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ELli:Mr:NTARY 

BREEK  EDUCATION 


FREDERICK  H.  LANE 

I'HINCIPAI.   OK    BABYI,ON    UNION   8CHOOI. 
2-/5-4/ 


SYRACUSE,   N.    Y. 

C.   W.   BARDEEN,  PUBLISHER 

1893 


Copyright,  1895,  by  C.  W.  Kardeen 


Education 
Library 

LA 


PREFACE 

This  Essay  on  Elementary  Greek  Educa- 
tion is  the  amplification  of  a  paper  prepared 
as  a  part  of  the  class  work  of  the  writer 
while  a  student  in  the  classes  of  Dr.  James 
M.  Milne  of  the  Oneonta  Normal  School. 
The  information  here  collected  is  derived 
from  sources  not  accessible  to  the  average 
reader  and  while  not  the  result  of  original 
research  in  all  cases,  has  enough  of  the 
author's  own  investigation  and  enough  of 
arrangement  and  presentation  of  material 
to  induce  the  hope  that  it  may  not  be  with- 
out value  to  his  fellow-teachers  and  to  Avar- 
rant  its  foisting  on  an  indulgent  public. 


Elementary  Greek  Education 

INTRODUCTION 

From  ancient  Greece  all  the  streams  which 
swell  the  ciirrejit  of  modern  civilization 
have  proceeded.  Greek  philosophy,  paint- 
ing, architecture,  history,  sculi)ture,  poetry 
and  oratory  have  furnished  suggestion  and 
inspiration  for  all  the  cenluries  since  ;  ped- 
agogy should  absorb  what  it  may.  If  there 
are  mistakes  to  avoid,  practices  to  modify, 
or  successes  to  imitate,  the  knowledge 
should  be  obtained  and  advantage  taken. 
That  the  foundation  of  all  other  achieve- 
ments which  glorify  the  Hellenic  name  must 
have  been  in  the  educational  system,  is  suf- 
ficient enticement  for  its  study. 

Greece  proper  included  only  that  portion 
of  the  peninsula  lying  between  the  parallels 
36°  30'  and  40°  north  latitude,  about  that  of 
Virginia  and  Maryland,  and  was  in  extent 
about  one-half  the  size  of  Pennsylvania. 
It  had  a  rich  diversity  of  surface,  a  delight- 


b  ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 

ful  and  equable  climate  and  a  coast  line 
much  indented.  A  study  of  the  physical 
features  alone  would  give  a  key  to  the  or- 
ganization of  its  inhabitants.  The  natural 
divisions  of  the  land  must  produce  nations 
differing  in  customs  and  tendencies,  j'et  the 
narn.w  limits  of  the  whole  country  and  the 
proximity  of  neighboring  peoples  precluded 
an  essentially  distinct  language  or  an  entire 
dissimilarity  of  customs.  In  harmony  with 
this,  Greece  was  peopled  by  a  race  allied  in 
language  and  religion,  but  divided  by  dif- 
ferences of  dialect,  and  by  the  existence, 
here  and  there,  of  various  minor  dieties  es- 
sentially local. 

During  the  Heroic  (Legendary)  Age 
Greece  was  inhabited  by  four  seemingly  dis- 
tinct nationalities, — Dorians,  vEolians,  loni- 
ans  and  Achaeans.  Their  genealogy  was 
traced  in  myth  directly  from  Prometheus, 
the  parallel  of  the  Hebrew  Adam.  After 
the  "general  deluge"  which  Zeus  sent  upon 
the  earth  in  consequence  of  the  iniquity  of 
the  "brazen  race,"  Deucalion  and  his  wife 
Pyrrha,  preserved  by  an  ark  which  Prome- 
theus, the  father  of  Deucalion,  had  fore- 
warned them  to  build,  found  themselves  the 


INTRODUCTION  I 

sole  inhabitants  of  deserted  Greece.  De- 
scending from  Mt.  Parnassus  where  their 
ark  had  rested  after  the  subsidence  of  the 
nine  days'  flood,  they  prayed  that  the  land 
might  again  be  relieved  of  its  solitude  by 
the  creation  of  a  race  of  men.  In  answer 
to  their  petition  Zeus  directed  them  to  gather 
stones  from  the  ground  and  cast  them  over 
their  shoulders.  Those  cast  by  Pyrrha  be- 
came women,  those  by  Deucalion,  men. 
Thus  was  created  what  in  Latin  and  Greek 
literature,  is  called  the  "stony  race  of  men." 

The  offspring  of  Deucalion  and  Pyrrha 
were  two  sons,  Hellen  and  Amphictyon,  and 
a  daughter,  Protogeneia.  Hellen  had  three 
sons,  Dorus,  ^olus,  and  Xuthus.  Between 
these  three  Greece  or  Hellas  was  divided, 
^olus  reigning  in  Thessaly,  and  Dorus  in 
the  country  lying  north  of  the  Corinthian 
Gulf,  opposite  Peloponnesus.  To  Xuthus 
two  sons  were  born,  Achaeus  and  I6n,  be- 
tween whom  his  territory  of  the  Peloponne- 
sus was  divided.  Thus  originatea  the  four 
tribes,  to  all  of  whom,  however,  was  applied 
the  name  Hellenes,  from  their  common 
ancestor. 

Besides  the  fraternal  feeling  which  their 


6  ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

supposed  ancestry  would  engender,  the  Am- 
phictyonic  Council,  which  met  semi-annu- 
ally in  the  spring  at  Delphi,  and  in  the 
autumn  at  Anthela,  near  Thermopyla?,  the 
national  games,  and  a  common  interest  in 
the  Delphic  oracle  all  conspired  to  unify  the 
varied  tendencies  of  each  division  into  an 
approximately  general  aim.  The  aim  was 
that  thorough  individualization  should  l)e 
modified  by  mutual  interdependence.  The 
realization  of  this  ideal  placed  Greece  fore- 
most among  the  ^nations  whose  education 
has  been  distinctly  "national." 

In  that  time  which  the  epic  poets  have 
rendered  immortal  as  preeminently  the  "Age 
of  Heroes,"  is  found  the  first  phase  of  Greek 
Education.  This  period  extends  from  the 
darkness  of  an  unknown  past,  down  through 
the  legendary  days,  misty,  yet  luminous 
with  the  names  of  Hercules,  Eurystheus, 
Jason,  Achilles,  Agamemnon,  Ulysses,  Hec- 
tor and  Meleager  ;  it  comes  forth  into  light 
with  the  return  of  the  Heracleidaj  (Dorian 
Migration);  and  sinks  into  historical  obliv- 
ion during  the  three  centuries  immediately 


INTRODUCTION  9 

preceding  the  first  recorded  Olympiad,  776 
B.  C. 

The  second  period  produced  those  treas- 
ures of  art  and  literature  which  have  baffled 
the  efforts  of  sueceeding  ages  to  excel  or 
equal.  It  began  with  the  first  Olympiad, 
reached  its  culmination  in  the  age  of  Peri- 
cles, and  sank  into  its  decline  through  the 
disintegration  of  religious  belief  and  the 
spirit  of  criticism  stimulated  by  the  rhetor- 
icians and  philosophers  at  the  close  of  the 
Peloponnesian  War,  404  B.  C.  This  has 
been  appropriately  called  ' '  State  Educa- 
tion." 

A  third  period— when  Greece  had  lost  her 
nationality,  and  Athens  had  become  the 
school  of  the  world,  when  her  methods  were 
as  cosmopolitan  as  her  pupils,  and  her  edu- 
cation was  not  for  Greece  — is  generally 
called  the  "University  Period." 

In  the  following  pages,  the  aims,  meth- 
ods and  results  of  education  during  the  first 
two  periods  will  be  outlined. 


CHAPTER  I 


HEROIC   EDUCATION 


Concernins:  the  period  includei  under  the 
head  "Heroic  Education,"  little  is  known 
beyond  what  may  be  gathered  from  the 
poems  of  the  Epic  Cycle.  Of  these,  the 
ni;»d  and  the  Odyssey  alone  remain  in  their 
entiret}',  and  accordingly  from  them  about 
all  that  is  known  of  the  customs  of  this  pe- 
riod must  be  drawn.  While  no  date  can 
be  accurately  assigned  for  the  production  of 
either  of  these  poems,  they  are  Vjy  common 
consent  attrilnited  to  a  period  considerably 
later  than  the  siege  of  Troy  (twelfth  century 
B.  C. ),  and  prior  to  the  first  Olympiad. 
^ow  it  must  be  remembered  that  any  poet 
in  referring  to  events  belonging  to  a  period 
anterior  to  his  own,  must  necessarily  borrow 
much  from  his  own  experience  and  much 
from  the  customs  of  his  own  time.  If,  then, 
we  accept  the  general  date  above  given,  we 
shall   seem   warranted    in   accepting    these 


HEROIC   EDUCATION  11 

poems  as  mirrors  reflecting  tolerably  well 
the  manners  and  customs  of  the  ninth,  tenth, 
and  eleventh  century  before  our  era. 

On  account  of  the  simplicity  and  freedom 
of  early  times  we  can  expect  little  of  system- 
atic arrangement  in  their  educational  plan. 

Society  at  this  period   was    divided  into 

(1)  the  ruling  class,  Achaeans, '  consisting  of 
the  king  {hasileus"^)    and  allied  chieftains  ; 

(2)  the  freemen  {laoi^),  consisting  of  the 
general  mass  of  the  populace,  who  served  as 
warriors,  and  practiced  the  various  trades 
requiring  any  considerable  skill  ;  and  C3) 
the  slaves  {douloi'^),  who  were  mostly  cap- 
tives taken  in  war.  In  addition  to  these,  a 
fourth  class  called  thetes,  ^  made  up  of  poor 
freemen  who  possessed  no  land  and  were 
compelled  to  work  for  wages,  may  be  men- 
tioned. The  meagreness  of  their  pay  and 
the  uncertainty  of  employment  seems  to 
have  rendered  them  even  worse  off  than  the 
slaves. 

In  the  state,  there  was  little  of  organiza- 
tion. Such  a  thing  as  a  constitution,  though 
a  necessity  to  the  historic  Greek,  was  as  yet 

^  drjref 


12  ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 

unknown.  The  sole  strength  of  the  gov- 
ernment lay  in  the  devotion  and  obedience 
of  the  people  to  their  king.  He  was  always 
of  a  family  revered  as  being  descended  from 
some  god,  wes  looked  upon  as  the  represen- 
tative of  Zeus  on  earth,  and  was  chosen  for 
his  superior  eloquence,  strength  and  cour- 
age. There  were  two  assemblies,  the  boul^^y 
composed  of  the  king  and  his  chieftains,  in 
which  skill  in  debate  was  a  requisite,  and 
the  gathering  in  the  market  place,  agora^, 
where  the  king  made  known  the  decisions  of 
the  boule  to  the  freemen,  and  permitted  lim- 
ited discussion  In  the  agora,  bringing 
together,  as  it  did,  the  masses,  eloquence 
was  most  potent. 

In  the  perpetual  unrest  of  so  early  an  age, 
there  was  little  charity  for  the  weak.  From 
birth,  only  the  fittest  were  allowed  to  sur- 
vive. Strength  was  reenforced ;  weakness 
left  to  its  own  extinction.  He  who  could 
not  help  himself,  could  expect  no  aid  from 
others.  Men  were  bound  together  only  by 
the  ties  of  relationship  or  zeal  for  some  com- 
mon cause.  The  solemnity  of  an  oath  arose 
from  its  connection   with  a  deity,   usually 

^  BovXrj  '-^'ayopd. 


HEROIC   EDUCATION  16 

Horkos^,  yet  often  some  other  god  under  a 
special  appellation.  The  inherent  duty  of 
ruAB-toward  man  seems  scarcely. considered. 
Accordingly^ducatTon4*adr'f6r  its  aim  such 
a  development  as  would  best  prepare  for 
this  struggle.  By  the  poets,  deeds  of  daring 
were  applauded  ;  while  acts  of  cowardice 
were  derided.  The  victor  was  a  ruler  ;  the 
vanquished,  a  slave.  The  ideal  ever  held 
before  the  youth  was  the  acquisition  of 
honor  and  glory  through  personal  prowess. 
The  eloquence  of  Nestor  and  the  craft  of 
Odysseus  were  the  intellectual  ideals.  Achil- 
les was  the  perfect  type,  to  which  every 
Greek  youth  hoped  to  attain. 

We  know  little  as  to  the  form  of  the  educa- 
tion of  this  period.  It  doubtless  consisted  of 
little  besides  the  imitation  of  his  elders,  and 
was  probably  guided  by  the  parental  instinct 
which  leads  a  man  to  train  his  sons  in  a  way 
which  coincides  as  nearly  as  possible  with 
what  he  esteems  the  height  of  manly  devel- 
opment. The  adult,  as  shown  by  descrip- 
tions of  games,  was  proficient  in  running, 
leaping  and  discus-throwing.  In  the  beau- 
tiful myth  of  Hyacinthus,  Apollo  even  was 


14  ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 

said  to  practise  the  la^t.  Horsemanship, 
from  tlie  adroitness  with  which  chariots  must 
be  handled  on  the  battlefield,  must  have 
been  common.  Cavalry,  however,  was  as 
yet  unknown  in  warfare.  The  marksman- 
ship exhibited  by  the  archers,  and  the  de- 
pendence placed  upon  the  spear,  either 
hurled  or  thrust,  made  practice  with  these 
imperative.  Among  the  sea-dwelling  Greeks 
swinnning  was  common,  indeed  in  later 
times  "  he  can  neither  swim  or  read  "^  be- 
came the  proverbial  appellation  of  an  igno- 
ramus. After  removal  from  the  immediate 
Avatchfulness  of  his  mother  and  the  female 
slaves,  the  boy's  time  was  probably  occupied 
in  such  sports  as  he  could  copy  from  the 
acts  of  his  elders,  as  seen  or  recounted  to 
him  ;  and  upon  reaching  youth's  estate,  the 
practice  of  these  same  exercises  doubtless 
became  obligatory. 

The  intellectual  culture  was  mostly  lim- 
ited by  experience.  It  was  necessarily  of 
a  narrow  range,  but  held  in  such  a  way  as 
to  be  at  once  available.  In  harmony  with 
his  characteristics  in  every  age,  the  Homeric 
Greek    was  trained    to    think   on    his    feet 

^  fiTjBe  velv,  fi-qSe  rypdfifiara. 


HEROIC   EDUCATION  15 

Writing  was  probably  unknown,  so  that 
memory  was  the  only  storehouse  of  knowl- 
edge. The  multitude  could  only  be  influ- 
enced by  addressing  them  ;  and  as  in  the 
early  history  of  most  nations,  addresses  were 
most  acceptable  when  in  rhythmic  form, 
abounding  in  poetic  imagery,  and  accom- 
panied by  music.  People  were  interested  in 
tales  of  the  marvellous.  The  exploits  of 
heroes  and  interposition  of  the  gods  were 
subjects  of  never-flagging  interest  :  and  the 
acceptable  rendering  of  them  ever  product- 
ive of  favor  to  the  Hinger  {nnido-i^).  From 
the  demand  for  such  compositions,  the  call- 
ing of  bard  became  as  distinct  a  trade 
as  that  of  smith,  leather-dresser,  or  leech. 
Its  standing  in  the  community  may  be  in- 
ferred from  the  fact  that  kings  themselves 
did  not  disdain  its  practice  Achilles  sang 
heroic  deeds  to  the  accompaniment  of  his 
own  lyre.  At  every  public  gathering  and 
in  the  courts  of  kings,  tlie  people  were 
amused  and  aroused  by  the  stirring  lays  of 
these  bards.  An  audience  wild  with  desire 
for  the  fray  as  they  listened  to  the  story  of 
carnage  before  Troy,  or  melted  to  pity  at 

1  'aoiBof; 


]6  ELEMENTARY    CREEK    EDrCATION 

the  parting  of  Hector  and  Andromache, 
must  have  been  an  oft-repeated  sight  to  the 
Greek  of  the  Homeric  period.  Phicing  as 
they  did  implicit  faith  in  the  reality  of  the 
heroes  and  divinities  depicted  in  the  recitals 
great  influence  must  be  imputed  to  their 
presentation.  Their  didactic  use  was  pow- 
erful. The  bard  became  the  teacher  and 
preacher  of  the  community.  To  him  the 
people  looked  for  the  description  of  the 
deeds  of  heroes  and  the  attributes  of  the 
gods,  and  they  endeavored  to  mould  their 
own  lives  in  accordance  with  the  ideals  pro- 
trayed  by  him.  From  the  partially  uncon- 
scious tuition  of  these  primitive  teachers, 
the  people  must  have  derived  the  larger 
share  of  both  intellectual  and  moral  educa- 
tion. 

Geography,  never  extensive  to  the  Greek, 
was  learned  from  the  location  of  the  heroic 
adventures  recited.  All  the  geography  with 
which  Homer  appears  acquainted  is  con- 
tinental Greece  with  the  neighboring 
islands  of  the  .Egean  Sea,  Thrace,  and  the 
Troad,  with  the  Hellespont  between,  and 
Asia  Minor  between  Paphlagonia  northward 
and  Lycia  to  the  south.     Phoenicia,    Egypt, 


HEROIC  EDUCATION  17 

and  Libya  are  known  by  name.  The  Nile  is 
referred  to  as  the  ''  river  Egypt,"  but  the 
Black  Sea  is  unknown.  Sicily^  is  men- 
tioned, but  no  knowledge  is  shown  of  Italy, 
or  any  part  of  the  western  world. 

Number  was  carried  little  further  than 
counting.  Coined  money  was  yet  unknown, 
all  trade  being  carried  on  by  barter.  The 
natural  aversion  of  the  Greeks  to  commerce 
did  away  with  the  necessity  for  much  com- 
putation. The  decline  of  superstition  had 
not  yet  produced  science.  The  character  of 
the  Greek  religion  obviated  its  necessity. 
The  various  phenomena  underlying  science 
were  readily  explained  by  reference  to  the 
presiding  genius  of  some  god,  or  by  personi- 
fication. To  the  Greek  all  Nature  was  a 
manifestation  of  certain  invisible  powers. 
The  storm  of  the  sea  was  the  rage  of  Nep- 
tune^;  the  whirlpool  of  the  Strait  of  Mes- 
sina was  the  abode  of  two  monsters,  Scylla 
and  Charybdis,  each  seeking  to  engulf  the 
unwary  mariner  ;  and  in  the  rumble  of  the 
earthquake  and  in  the  belching  volcano  were 
recognized  the  struggles  of  the  imprisoned 
Typhoeus.     In  the  ripple  of  the  stream,  the 

1  '2iKavir;.        ^  UodEiSdv. 


18        ELEMENTARY    GREEK   EDUCATION 

rustle  of  the  branches,  and  the  twitter  of 
the  birds,  was  heard  the  voice  of  some  con- 
trolling deity  ;  the  interpretation  of  these 
manifestations  {manteia'^),  as  of  the  sacred 
oak  at  Dodona,  was  a  favorite  method  of 
learning  the  will  of  the  gods. 

Although  there  probably  was  no  reading, 
effective  speaking  and  reciting  received 
much  attention.  Besides  the  bards,  who 
sang  their  own  compositions,  there  was 
another  class  called  rhapsodists,  who  sang 
the  verses  of  other  composers,  striving  to 
simulate  by  intonation  and  gesture  the  char- 
acter described.  To  these  latter  we  are 
indebted  for  the  preservation  of  the  Iliad 
and  Odyssey.  These  poems,  in  common 
with  numerous  other  epics  now  known 
only  by  name,  were  recited  at  festivals  by 
rhapsodists  especially  trained  for  the  occa- 
sion. Each  had  a  definite  part  assigned 
which  it  was  his  pride  to  render  complete. 
Holding  in  his  hand  a  branch  of  laurel  as  a 
symbol  of  ordination  into  the  service  of  the 
muses,  he  interpreted  the  author's  concep- 
tion of  the  character  immortalized  in  the 
selection. 

1  HavTEia. 


HEROIC   EDUCATION  19 

In  the  ethics  of  the  Greek,  justice  was 
supreme,  and  Zeus  its  dispenser.  In  the 
Iliad  we  find,  ''  When  in  the  market-place 
men  deal  unjustly,  and  the  rulers  decree 
crooked  judgment,  not  regarding  the  fear 
of  Zeus,^'  he  sends  the  storm,  the  earth- 
quake and  thunderbolt  as  his  avengers. 
Ulysses  says,  "  Zeus  looks  upon  the  children 
of  men  and  punishes  the  evil-doer."  The 
ill-will  of  the  gods  might  be  averted  by 
prayers  and  sacrifices,  but  back  of  them  and 
unchangeable,  were  the  Fates^.  They  held 
strictly  to  account  alike  both  gods  and  men. 
Pleading  could  not  turn  their  decrees,  nor 
guilt  escape  their  punishment.  Destiny  was 
all-powerful ;  the  gods,  each  endowed  with 
liberal  power,  helped  in  and  were  answera- 
ble for  its  fulfilment.  Idolatry  was  never 
practised,  and  in  this  time  even  temples 
were  rarely  built.  Their  religion  was  en- 
tirely a  conception  of  duty  towards  higher 
beings  who  dwelt  beyond  the  clouds  and 
were  invisble  to  mortal  eyes.  The  keynote 
of  their  moral  obligation  is  found  in  the 
term  aidos^  which  Mr.  Gladstone  thus  ex- 
plains:   ''The   noblest    of    all   the   ethical 

^  Motpai.        ^  aidooi. 


20        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

indications  of  Homer's  poems  is  to  be  found 
in  the  notable  and  comprehensive  word 
aidos.  It  refuses  to  be  translated  by  any 
single  term  of  English  or  of  any  other  modern 
language ;  indeed,  I  doubt  whether  it  had 
not  abated  much  of  its  force  in  the  classical 
age  of  Greece.  It  means  shame,  but  never 
false  shame  ;  it  means  honor,  but  never  the 
base-born  thing  in  these  last  days  called 
prestige.  It  means  duty,  but  duty  shaped 
with  a  peculiar  grace.  It  means  reverence, 
and  this  is  without  doubt  its  chief  element. 
It  means  chivalry,  and,  though  this  word 
cannot  be  given  a  good  technical  translation, 
it  is  perhaps  nearer  in  pith  and  marrow  to 
the  Homeric  aidos  than  any  other  word 
we  know.  But  aidos  excels  it  as  expressing 
the  faculty  of  the  mental  eye  turned  ever 
inward.  Aidos  is  based  upon  a  true  self- 
respect,  upon  an  ever  living-consciousness 
of  the  nature  that  we  bear  and  of  the  obli- 
gation that  we  owe  to  its  laws.  There  is  no 
sin  that  a  human  being  can  commit  with- 
out sinning  against  aidos."  There  was  no 
law,  but  that  usage  which  custom  had  cre- 
ated. This  unwritten,  "common  law''* 
1  ef>z?. 


HEROIC  EDUCATION  21 

was  the  outcome  of  their  conception  of  duty 
toward  their  deities  and  not  of  human  pref- 
erence. Devotion  and  obedience  to  the 
king  was  of  prime  importance  ;  respect  for 
old  age  universal.  Parents  were  to  care  for 
their  children  until  grown,  and  in  turn  to 
receive  care  and  support  from  them  in  old 
age. 

Woman  occupied  a  position  much  in 
advance  of  her  historic  sister  as  regards 
freedom  and  influence.  The  prominence  in 
legend  of  such  names  as  Penelope,  Androm- 
ache, Clytemnestra,  Hecuba,  Eriphyle  and 
Jocasta  amply  illustrates  the  difference. 
Woman  was  the  companion  of  man,  not  his 
slave.  The  marriage  tie  was  respected,  and 
even  a  second  marriage  looked  on  with  dis-s 
favor^  The  mother  was  the  early  educator^ 
j»#-ifer  sons  and  had  complete  charge  of  her 
daughters.  Girls  were  trained  in  household 
duties  and  to  superintend  the  work  of  their 
slaves.  Spinning  and  weaving  were  usual. 
The  cloth  for  all  clothing  worn  was  spun 
and  woven  by  the  women.  Helen  embroid- 
ered a  peplujii  depicting  the  exploits  of  the 
Greeks  and  Trojans.  The  skill  and  acuteness 
of  Penelope  are  shown  in  the  construction  oj 


23        ELEMENTARY   GREEK   EDUCATION 

the  web  with  which  she  kept  her  suitors  at 
bay.  Dancing  and  playing  upon  the  kite 
must  have  been  the  principal  accomplish- 
ments. The  freedom  and  profitable  nature 
of  this  training  produced  most  excellent 
results.  Homer  speaks  of  Greece  as  "full 
of  lovely  maids."  Sparta  was  the  "  abode  of 
beautiful  women "  and  Achaea  likewise 
famed.  Especial  women  are  described  as 
**fair-cheeked/'i  "glancing-eyed/'^  ''with 
beautiful  hair/'^  "  with  a  slender  ankle,"* 
and  '' silver-footed. "5  Their  more  nearly 
equal  rank  with  man  stimulated  intellectual 
activity. 

Many  customs  existed  which  indicate  how 
much  yet  lacked  a  complete  escape  from 
barbarism.  Human  sacrifice  was  allowed,  as 
is  shown  in  the  annual  consignment  of 
Athenian  youths  and  maidens  to  appease  the 
Minotaur, and  the  frustrated  sacrifice  of  Iphi- 
geneia  at  Aulis.  Homicides  were  frequent 
and  unpunished  by  the  authorities.  The 
only  retribution  was  that  of  personal  retali- 
ation. The  murdered  man's  relatives  were 
bound  to  avenge  his  death,  but  a  reparation 

^  kaXXiTtdp'^oi.  '  eXikooTttda.  ^  kaXXikoi-ioio. 
*  kaXXidcpvpo?.         ^  'apyvpoTts^a. 


HEROIC   EDUCATION  23 

of  cattle,  land  or  treasure  might  be  made 
and  the  slayer  purified  of  his  crime.  In  the 
slaughter  of  a  parent,  as  with  (Edipus  and 
Orestes,  the  persecution  of  the  Furies  (Erin- 
yes^) rendered  life  a  torment  to  the  parri- 
cide. In  battle  no  quarter  was  asked  or 
given ;  all  the  latent  savagery  in  their  na- 
tures was  aroused.  The  dead  body  of  an 
enemy  was  stripped  and  thrown  to  the  dogs, 
and  in  the  case  of  Hector's  dead  body  out- 
raged by  Achilles  no  criticism  was  called 
forth.  AVhen  Priam  seeks  the  dead  body  of 
his  son  he  presents  this  terrible  picture  : 
*'Mysons  are  slain,  my  daughters  are  dragged 
into  captivity,  the  chambers  of  my  palace 
violated,  the  infant  children  dashed  to  the 
ground.''  An  orphan  despoiled  of  his  her- 
itage could  exjiect  little  aid  from  society. 
The  last  three  phases  of  social  organization 
present  a  striking  contrast  to  later  Greek 
development.  In  historic  times,  homicide 
was  a  sin  against  the  gods  and  deserving  the 
check  of  society  ;  while  maltreatment  of  the 
dead  was  thought  unworthy  of  a  right-mind- 
ed Greek.  After  the  battle  of  Platsea,  Pau- 
sanias  rejected  with  scorn  a  proposition  to 
1  'Epivvsi. 


24   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

take  revenge  upon  the  dead  Mardonius  for 
the  insults  inflicted  upon  Leonidas  at  Ther- 
mopylae. In  the  laws  of  Athens,  there  was 
a  special  provision  for  the  care  of  the  per- 
sons and  property  of  orphan  minors. 

The  household  manners  of  this  period  in- 
dicate a  state  of  civilization  in  some  respects 
in  advance  of  their  descendants,  and  the  aes- 
thetic characteristic  afterward  so  marked 
had  already  become  manifest.  Satisfying 
the  appetite  did  not  engross  the  whole  at- 
tention at  meals.  Discussion,  wit,  and  song 
enlivened  their  repasts  and  a  certain  eti- 
quette elevated  their  influence.  Bathing 
before  eating  was  practised  ;  slaves  washed 
the  feet  of  guests  with  tepid  water  in  a 
brazen  basin  ;  and  on  the  return  from  a 
warlike  expedition  men  bathed  in  the  sea 
before  considering  themselves  sufficiently 
purified  to  enter  their  abodes  and  those  of 
their  household  gods.  The  guests  never 
reclined  as  in  later  periods  in  both  Greece 
and  Eome,  but  sat  at  table.  Wine  was  al- 
ways mixed  with  water,  and  offered  to  the 
oldest  first.  Gluttony  was  unbecoming,  and 
drunkenness  unpardonable.     The  meat  was 


HEROIC  EDUCATION"  25 

cut  by  carvers,  1  and  attendants  waited  upon 
the  guests,  and  washed  the  tables  with 
sponges  from  time  to  time  during  the  meal. 
Dancing  was  indulged  in;  but  by  the  guests, 
both  men  and  women,  instead  of  by  hired 
performers  as  later. 

Houses  were  built  of  wood,  stone,  tiles 
and  metals,  and  in  decoration  must  have 
been  magnificent.  Golden  drinking  cups- 
are  mentioned,  and  ''goblets  of  silver  save 
the  lips,  and  they  arc  bound  with  gold." 
The  shield  of  Achilles  was  adorned  with  "  a 
vineyard  beautiful,  all  of  gold,  and  heavily 
laden  with  grapes."  Their  helmets  were 
''  caps  wrought  all  from  silver  save  their 
brims  of  gold,''  and  they  were  further  pro- 
tected by  "  brazen  corselets  edged  round  by 
shining  tin."  The  mgis^  of  Minerva  had  a 
hundred  tassels  pendent,  all  of  gold,  all 
well  plaited  and  each  worth  a  hecatomb."* 
All  these  indicate  a  knowledge  of  metal- 
working  far  advanced.  In  the  passage  re- 
lating to  the  arms  of  Achilles  as  made  by 
Hephaestos,  Homer  gives  some  practical  no- 
tion of  the  armorer's  work  : 

^  datrpot.  *  "  Xpveoidi  kvTCeXXot?."  ^  alyii, 
*  II.  B.  448-449. 


26    ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

"  So  speaking  he  withdrew,  and  went  where  lay 
The  bellows,  turned  them  toward  the  fire,  and  bade 
The  work  begin.     From  twenty  bellows  came 
Their  breath  into  the  furnaces,— a  blast 
Varied  in  strength  as  need  might  be  ;  for  now 
They  blew  with  violence  for  a  hasty  task. 
And  then  with  gentler  breath,  as  Vulcan  pleased 
And  as  the  work  required.     Upon  the  fire 
He  laid  impenetrable  brass,  and  tin, 
And  precious  gold  and  silver." 

The  dignity  of  labor  was  then  assured  as 
it  has  never  been  since.  Kings  and  queens 
labored  and  were  proud  of  their  accomplish- 
ments. Skilled  work  denoted  a  higher 
order  of  mind  and  was  doubly  honorable. 
The  head  of  the  family  killed  and  cooked 
the  food,  and  was  not  a  butcher  but  a  sacri- 
ficing priest. 

In  such  an  atmosphere  the  education  of 
the  youth  was  given.  Not  by  regulated 
courses  of  instruction  occupying  a  set  por- 
tion of  time  and  with  duty  "  measured 
always/'  but  by  constant  presence  amid  the 
ennobling  influences  of  this  truly  "  heroic  " 
period,  manhood  was  reached.  The  best  of 
preceding  ages  were  preserved  for  emu- 
lation, and  high  ideals  of  living  inculcated 
by  daily  association  and  required  by  religious 


HEROIC  EDUCATION"  27 

faith.  From  such  a  source  proceeded  the 
culture  and  refinement  of  Greece,  and  by 
the  stimulus  of  noble  simplicity  conveyed  in 
the  Great  Epics  modern  progress  has  been 
in  a  great  measure  produced.  Without  a 
plan  of  education,  every  part  was  educa- 
tional. 


CHAPTER  II 


STATE   EDUCATION 

Oa  emerging  from  the  two  or  three  cen- 
turies of  obscurity  between  the  Heroic  Age 
and  the  era  of  recorded  history,  the  social 
composition  of  the  Hellenic  races  shares  the 
general  illumination.  The  change  is  that  of 
from  few  witnesses  to  many,  from  poetry  to 
prose.  Conjecture's  sway  has  lessened  and 
assertion's  has  begun.  The  development  of 
organization  has  been  considerable.  Gov- 
ernment has  become  more  stable,  and  the 
idea  of  nation  and  national  interests  has 
subordinated  personal  leadership.  Individ- 
ual caprice  has  given  place  to  rule  along^; 
ethical  lines ;  experience  has  crystallized^ 
into  laws  ;  and  the  sum  of  individual  tastes 
has  become  a  national  ideal.  An  educational 
system  adapted  to  the  production  of  this 
ideal  is  under  State  control,  and  the  period 
may  be  properly  termed  that  of  State  Edu- 
cation. 


STATE   EDUCATION  29 

As  hag  been  noticed,  the  distinct  nation- 
alities of  Greece,  though  in  a  sense  united 
by  the  Amphictyonic  League  and  the  great 
national  games,  viz.: — Olympian,  Pythian, 
Nemean  and  Isthmian,  still  retained  an  es- 
sentially distinct  individuality,  each  work- 
ing out  an  ideal  peculiarly  its  own.  The 
Doric  race  (Sparta,  Aryos,  Crete,  and  Mes- 
senia)  placed  proficiency  in  gymnastics  fore- 
most ;  the  Ionic  (Attica  and  the  islands  of 
the  Archipelago)  esteemed  poetry  in  an 
equal  degree ;  while  among  the  -^olians 
(Boeotia  and  Thessaly)  music  was  regarded 
as  principal.  In  after  development,  the 
Doric  and  Ionic  tendencies  absorbed  the 
^olian,  and  except  during  the  short  space 
of  Theban  supremacy  under  Epaminondas, 
the  study  of  Greek  education  concerns  itself 
with  the  methods  pursued  in  two  cities^ 
Doric  and  aristocratic  Sparta,  Ionic  and 
and  democratic  Athens.  These  two  cities, 
though  their  systems  were  opposed  in  some 
respects,  nevertheless  contained  much  in 
common.  Each  aimed  at  developing  tfi^ 
mental,  moral  and  physical  functions,  but! 
were  at  variance  in  their  methods.  Spartan 
education  was  ** individual"  but  would  fit 


30        ELEMEiiTARY   GREEK   EDUCATION 

each  person  to  a  common  mould.  The  re- 
sulting individuality  was  to  be  such  as  would 
best  subserve  the  end  of  making  Sparta 
supreme  in  military  power.  Athens  with 
its  educational  plan  of  the  same  general 
type,  was  yet  more  fully  its  realization.  In- 
dividuality was  truly  individual.  The  State 
was  less  selfish  in  its  demands  than  at  Sparta, 
and  trusted  prosperity  to  come  to  itself 
through  the  zeal  and  talents  of  a  free  and 
cultured  citizenship.  **  A  sound  mind  in  a 
sound  body''  was  a  principle  adopted  equally 
by  both  ;  but  to  the  Spartan  this  depend- 
ence was  of  a  utilitarian  nature  only,  while 
to  the  Athenian,  the  soundness  of  body  was 
the  prerequisite  of  that  beauty  of  both  mind 
and  body  which  was  the  true  and  ultimate 
ideal. 


OHAPTEE  III 


STATE   EDUCATION    AT   SPARTA 

The  Spartan  aim  was  to  rear  a  nation 
physically  perfect,  and  capable  of  enduring 
hunger,  thirst,  torture  or  even  death  with- 
out flinching;  to  make  the  people  unequalled 
in  military  drill  ;  and  to  inculcate  as  the 
supreme  thought,  absolute  devotion  to  the 
state.  The  system  of  education  accordingly 
kept  these  ends  ever  prominent.  From  in- 
fancy the  child  was  subjected  to  tests  look- 
ing toward  this  aim.  The  new-born  babe 
was  taken  before  a  council  of  elders,  who, 
after  an  examination  as  to  its  perfection  of 
form  and  general  robustness,  decided  wheth- 
er its  life  should  be  preserved.  Such  as 
were  puny  or  deformed  were  adjudged  un- 
able to  fill  the  requirements  of  adult  life, 
and  ''exposed^'  to  die.  Until  the  age  of 
seven,  the  child  to  whom  life  had  been 
granted  by  this  board  of  censors  was  left  to 
the  care  of  the  mother.     Naked,  or  clad  in 


32   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

a  single  short  garment,  he  was  early  trained 
in  the  endurance  of  the  hardships  essential 
to  his  type,  by  exposure  to  the  rigors  of  the 
weather,  by  deprivation  of  regular  food,  and 
by  a  total  absence  of  the  fondling  care  usu- 
ally accorded  those  of  tender  years. 

At  the  age  of  seven  the  child  was  con- 
signed to  the  care  of  the  State  and  subjected 
to  the  regular  public  education.^  Hence- 
forth he  ate  at  the  public  table  and  slept  in 
the  public  dormitory  ;  only  half  rations  were 
granted  and  his  bed  was  a  mere  bundle  of 
reeds  or  rushes  which  he  was  compelled  to 
gather  for  himself  from  the  banks  of  the 
Eurotas.  No  knife  or  instrument  other  than 
the  hands  was  allowed  in  obtaining  them. 
In  winter  thistledown  was  scattered  among 
the  reeds  to  inspire  a  feeling  of  warmth  in 
the  sleeper.  For  exercising  his  acuteness 
the  boy  was  often  allowed  only  what  he 
could  steal.  Adroitness  was  applauded  if 
he  was  not  detected  ;  but  his  awkwardness 
punished  if  discovered.  The  familiar  story 
of  the  Spartan  boy,  who  having  a  fox  se- 
creted under  his  garment  refused  to  ac- 
knowledge the  theft  and  fell  dead  from  the 

^  'ayooyij. 


STATE   EDUCATION    AT    SPARTA  33 

animal's  lacerations,  illustrates  the  trait. 
Indeed  larcency  seems  to  have  attained  the 
dignity  of  a  '^common  branch." 

The  head  of  the  educational  system  was  a 
superintendent^,  an  eminent  citizen  espe- 
cially chosen  to  look  after  the  games  and 
habits  of  the  youths.  His  powers  were  quite 
extended,  requiring  a  staff  of  assistants 
called  moderators^  or  chasteners^,  and 
whip-carriers^.  Besides  these  oflEicials  the 
youths  were  under  the  constant  supervision 
of  the  older  men,  who  regulated  their  play 
by  well-timed  praise  or  reproof.  They  were 
accustomed  to  stir  up  frequent  disputes 
and  conflicts  among  them  to  see  who  were 
brave  and  who  cowards.  In  the  absence  of 
the  superintendent^,  every  adult  citizen  had 
the  power  of  father  over  the  children  of  the 
State,  and  corrected  and  punished  all  vicious 
or  disorderly  conduct.  Besides,  each  boy 
had  a  special  guardian*  in  the  person  of 
some  adult,  who  entertained  affection  for 
his  ward 5,  ''backed'*  him  in  his  contests 
with   other  boys,   stimulated  his  courage, 

^leatSovo/iioi.    *dGO(ppovidrai.    '/uadryo<pdpoi. 


34        ELEMENTARY   GREEK   EDUCATION 

taught  him  to  speak  only  when  he  had  some- 
thing to  say  ("laconic"  brevity),  and  gen- 
erally formed  his  ideals.  This  relation 
though  recognized  by  law  was  established 
by  mutual  choice,  fortified  by  the  disgrace 
belonging  to  the  absence  of  such  attachment 
in  the  case  of  either  man  or  boy.  Though 
capable  of  and  frequently  subject  to  abuse, 
this  practice  was  the  strongest  character- 
forming  agency  of  the  Spartan  system. 

At  the  age  of  twelve,  the  training  in- 
creased in  severity  and  took  on  more  of  a 
military  character.  The  boys  were  divided 
into  bands  called  agelcB  or  bonm^.  For  each 
band,  a  captain  {honagar^)  from  those  boys 
just  entering  manhood.  The  bands  were 
subdivided  into  MIcb^,  each  of  which  slept 
in  a  part  assigned  on  the  rush  beds. 

At  eighteen  they  were  a4mitted  to  the 
youth's  class,  ephehi^,  and  as  meUeire7ies^ 
were  for  two  years  subjected  to  stricter  dis- 
cipline and  greater  drill.  They  were  com- 
pelled to  undergo  strict  examination  before 
the  epliors^  once  in  ten  days  regarding  their 

1  dyiXai,  Bovca.  *  Bovdyap.  ^  I'Xai. 

*F.cprifioi.     ^  /neAXaipej^s^.      ^  ilcpopoi. 


STATE  EDUCATION    AT    SPARTA  35 

physical  condition,  their  clothing  was  in- 
spected daily  ;  and  they  were  exercised  in 
gymnastics,  the  use  of  arms  and  in  light 
skirmishing  under  the  supervision  of  the 
hidoei^,  five  or  six  in  number,  who  were  a 
regularly  constituted  board  of  inspectors 
with  a  president^  and  a  place  of  meeting^  in 
the  market-place.  To  add  the  stimulation 
of  rivalry,  Lycurgus  enacted  in  his  constitu- 
tion that  the  ephors  appoint  three  Jiippa- 
gretiB  who  should  each  choose  one  hundred 
melleirenes  from  the  bravest  to  serve  as 
guards  for  the  kings.  Any  who  had  not 
been  chosen  could  challenge  those  who  had 
been,  and,  if  victorious,  take  their  places. 

At  twenty  they  were  called  eirenes*,  ex- 
ercised direct  influence  over  their  juniors 
and  were  eligible  for  actual  warfare.  Their 
training  was  in  the  endurance  of  hard- 
ship, coarse  food,  reed  beds,  and  limited 
bathing.  They  practised  with  heavy  arms, 
in  swimming  and  ball-playing,  danced  the 
Pyrrhic  dance,  and  manned  the  fortresses  of 
the  country.     Not  until  the  age  of  thirty 

^  fitSiaioi  {^tSsot).  '  Ttped^v;  ^tSeoav. 

^  apx^lov.        *  elpsvsi. 


36   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATIOK 

did  they  attain  their  majority  and  become 
admitted  to  citizenship.  Then  they  were 
held  to  the  exercise  of  their  political  func- 
tions, compelled  to  marry,  and  were  held 
subject  to  military  duty  until  the  age  of 
sixty. 

Gymnastics  were  much  indulged  in,  but 
not  as  extensively  or  systematically  as  in 
Athens.  Jumping,  running,  wrestling, 
playing  with  lances  and  at  quoits S  were 
common.  Boxing,  and  the  pancratium^ , 
a  combination  of  boxing  and  wrestling,  were 
not  permitted.  Hunting  was  a  favorite 
sport,  and  in  the  coverts  of  Taygetus  found 
an  excellent  ground  for  its  indulgence.  It 
was  mostly  in  favor  on  account  of  the  hard- 
ships encountered,  for  the  opportunity  of 
becoming  familiar  with  the  country — study- 
ing geography  by  "observation" — ,  and  for 
its  resemblance  to  actual  warfare. 

Letters  were  taught  very  little,  only  as  a 
concession'.  Memory  was  cultivated  quite 
largely.  Children  and  youth  were  taught 
hymns  to  the  gods,  and  metrical  statements 
of  the  laws  arranged  to  be  sung  to  fixed 

^  Sidkoi.        *  itaykpctTicn^.        '  eveka  ;fpera5. 


I 


STATE  EDUCATION  AT  SPARTA     37 

melodies.  Music,  not  largely  cultivated, 
was  entirely  in  the  Dorian  mode,  described 
as  essentially  manly  and  inspiring,  and  which 
was  regarded  as  the  national  music  of 
Greece*. 

Dancing  was  much  practised,  and  highly 
esteemed  for  its  union  of  gymnastics  and 
music,  and  for  its  use  in  producing  ease  in 
simultaneous  military  evolutions.  The  Pyr- 
rhic dance  was  performed  under  arms,  and 
is  described  as  representing  the  mode  of  at- 
tack and  the  rapid  motion  by  which  the  mis- 
siles and  blows  of  the  enemy  were  avoided. 
It  was  danced  to  the  music  of  the  flute  and 
with  a  quick,  light  step,  whence  the  Pyrrhic 
foot  ( ^-^  v^ )  of  prosody.  The  liormos^  was 
a  dance  by  youths  and  maidens,  in  which 
the  youths  danced  first  in  movements  suit- 
able to  their  age  and  of  a  military  character, 
and  were  followed  by  the  females  in  meas- 
ured steps  and  with  feminine  gestures.  The 
gytmiopcedia  was  a  festival  commemorating 
the  victory  of  Thyrea,  and  was  almost  entire- 
ly of  a  choric  character. 

The    athletic  taste  which  was  so  promi- 

^  'EXXrjvtkrj  ap/iovia.         *  opi-toi. 


38        ELEMENTARA    GREEK     EDUCATION 

nent  in  the  Athenian  mind  had  no  place  in 
Sparta.  *'  There  was  no  Spartan  sculptor, 
no  Laconian  painter,  no  Lacedaemonian 
poet."  The  duties  of  man  to  Sparta  alone 
were  taught  ;  those  of  man  to  his  fellow 
neglected.  To  bring  the  greatest  good  upon 
their  native  land  was  accounted  the  end  of 
ambition.  This  system,  admirably  adapted 
for  its  purpose  when  confined  within  the 
narrow  limits  of  Laconia,  was  not  an  educa- 
tion for  Greece.  Despite  their  successes  in 
the  Peloponnesian  War,  the  Spartans  could 
not  adapt  themselves  to  a  more  extended 
rule  or  a  broader  national  life,  and  on  ac- 
count of  this  defect,  the  Spartan  system 
never  became  widely  prevalent.  , 


CHAPTER   IV 


STATE    EDUCATION"   AT   ATHENS. 

"  Athens  is  the  school  of  Greece,  and  the  Athenian 
is  the  best  fitted  by  diversity  of  gifts  for  the  grace- 
ful performance  of  all  life's  duties." — Pericles. 

The  contrast  between  Sparta  and  Athens 
is  that  of  conservatism  with  liberality  ;  ascet- 
icism and  rigidity  with  luxury  and  freedom  ; 
law,  denial  and  utility  with  educated  voli- 
tion, indulgence  and  asthetics.  As  has  been 
observed,  education  at  Sparta  was  a  matter 
of  great  public  concern,  regulated  and  com- 
pelled by  law  in  its  minutest  feature^  ;  the 
educatroiT^f  Athens  was  mostly  private  in 
I  character  and  devoid  of  compulsory  enact- 
ments. According  to  the  boast  of  Pericles  : 
''The  individual  bent  of  each  man  is  there 
subjected  to  no  cramping  fetters  ;  he  is  al- 
lowed to  do  as  he  pleases  without  suspicion 
and  stern  measures  of  discipline — in  their 
stead  respect  for  law  prevails,  obedience  to 
authority,    law   unwritten,    a  general  con- 


40   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

tempt  feared  more  than  punishment,"  This 
freedom,  love  of  beauty  in  mind  and  body, 
of  harmony  in  all  faculties  shaped  and 
guided  Athenian  education  ;  and  Athens  has 
left  no  higher  compliment  for  herself  than 
this  fact  of  an  education  not  limited,  yet 
guided,  not  prescribed  but  expected. 

The  condition  of  Attic  society  rendered 
unnecessary  the  requirements  and  encour- 
agement which  are  so  important  in  modern 
times.  The  whole  Attic  population  com- 
prised but  twenty-one  thousand  citizens' 
{politm),  ten  thousand  resident  foreigners 
{metoikoi^  or  metoeci),  and  four  hundred 
thousand  slaves  {douloi^).  The  dispropor- 
tion between  the  citizen  and  slave  classes  is 
explained  on  the  assumption  that  in  enrolling 
the  former  only  those  of  military  age  were 
enumerated,  while  with  the  slaves,  each 
having  a  value,  every  soul  was  numbered. 
On  this  ground  this  citizen  class  could  be 
safely  taken  as  eighty  thousand,  thus  giving 
four  or  five  slaves  to  each  person,  which  is 
not  at  all  out  of  harmony  with  what  is  known 
of  them.     Only  the  citizens'  children  were 

^  7to\irat7'  '* udroikoi.     '  SovXoi. 


/ 


STATE   EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  41 

admitted  freely  to  the  schools,  though  the 
privilege  might  be  bestowed  upon  a  foreign 
resident  by  a  vote  the  people  {demus^)  on 
condition  of  a  certain  tax.  Education  was 
given  slaves  only  as  a  means  of  increasing 
their  value,  and  they  need  be  taken  into  no 
consideration  in  treating  the  educational 
system.yThe  Athenian  citizen  found  no 
vocation  open  to  him  except  the  military^, 
J^iterature  or  jj:t ;  all  other  was  dishonorable 
and  but  "  worthy  a  slave  ;  "  hence  it  was  that 
the  artisans,  tradesmen,  and  laborers  were 
slaves.  Thus .  the  very  class  for  whom  we 
find  "  compulsory  education  "  necessary  was 
removed  from  the  question. 

The  importance  accorded  education  is 
shown  by  the  many  allusions  made  to-  the 
existence  of  schools  in  various  towns.  Dur- 
ing the  Persian  Wj^^when  the  refugees 
from  Athens  sought  safety  in  the  Troezen, 
the  inhabitants  at  once  made  arrangements 
for  the  instruction  of  their  children,  and 
Herodotus,  Thucydides,  and  Pausanias,  each 
mention  calamities  befalling  schools  in  dif- 
ferent towns. 

1  difi.io'i. 


42        ELEMENTARY    GREEK     EDUCATION 

While  it  has  been  intimated  that  there  was 
an  absence  of  State  regulation  regarding 
courses  of  study  and  attendance  upon  them, 
whenever  public  sentiment  failed  in  furnish- 
ing sufficient  stimulus  for  a  proper  observ- 
ance of  its  customs,  stronger  means  were  in 
reserve.  In  the  case  of  orphans  or  children 
of  a  widow  the  archon^  might  interfere,  and 
under  circumstances  of  obvious  neglect  the 
Court  of  the  Areopagos  would  interpose. 
A  "  writ  of  injury  "  might  be  taken  against 
neglectful  guardians,  and  if  a  parent  had 
failed  in  providing  his  children  with  an 
education,  they  owed  him  no  support  in  old 
age  and  not  even  respect. 

The  Athenian  father  could  exercise  his 
own  discretion  as  to  whether  or  not  his  in- 
fant's'life  should  be  snared.  If  the  family 
was  already  large,  ^^he  infant  puny,  ac- 
cording to  general  usage  it  was  '"exposed", 
either  to  be  taken  uj)  by  some  one  and  after- 
ward sold  into  slavery,  or  allowed  to  perish 
from  starvation  and  exposure  to  the  elements. 
On  the  contrary  should  the  child  please  the 
father,  five  days  after  birth,  the  Amphidro- 

^  ypaqyfj  kakoa6eoa<i. 


STATE   EDUCATION    AT   ATHENS  43 

7nia,  it  was  "taken  up  "by  him,  and  car- 
ried around  the  hearth^  in  token  of  preser- 
vation. On  the  tenth  day^  presents  were 
made  and  a  name  given.  In  wealthy  fam- 
ilies a  nurse,  usually  a  Spartan,  and  other 
attendants,  had  almost  entire  charge  of  the 
child.  In  families  of  moderate  circum- 
stances, this  duty  probably  devolved  upon 
the  mother.  No  family  of  the  citizen  class 
was  so  poor  as  not  to  have  at  least  one  slave 
to  do  the  housework.  Babyhood  was  prob- 
ably passed  much  as  now,  though  with  fewer 
devices  for  its  comfort  and  amusement. 
Cradles^  are  not  mentioned  before  Plutarch. 
Baubles*  were  suspended  about  the  neck;  rat- 
tles^ (invented  by  Archytas),  go-carts,  ^  and 
dolls''  moulded  from  clay  to  represent  war- 
riors, generals,  and  mythological  subjects, 
were  common  toys,  ^arysas  bound  to  the 
tree  being  a  favorite.  It  was  the  custom  for 
the  nurses  to  relate  many  tales^  to  their 
charges,  the  subjects  of  which  were  chiefly 
legendary  actions  of  the  gods  and  heroes. 

^  ajucptdpo/uia.         *  Sekdrrf.         *  KXividta. 
*  nsptSipaia.         ^  itXaxayai.     *  dud^idei. 
'  kopcci.     *  ypcaSv  {rtOatv)   /iivQoi. 


44        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

From  a  supposed  tendency  of  these  to  give 
low  ideas  of  the  gods  and  to  debase  moral 
standards,  Plato,  in  his  Ideal  Republic, 
advises  much  care  in  their  selection,  and  he 
even  repudiates  Hesiod  and  Homer.  At  this 
time  no  such  fear  had  arisen.  The  Fablea 
of  -^sop  were  largely  used  in  these  narra- 
tions. 

The  behavior  of  his  children  was  especial- 
ly looked  after  by  the  Athenian  parent. 
They  were  never  put  on  exhibition  or  praised 
for  their  precocity,  their  bright  sayings  in- 
corporated into  adult  conversation,  nor 
themselves  made  the  arbiters  of  the  house- 
hold. Other  subjects  for  conversation  were 
found  in  their  presence,  and  the  children  were 
brought  up  to  be  well-behaved  in  the  presence 
of  their  elders,  attentive  rather  than  attend- 
ed. No  Greek  author  has  preserved  the 
bright  sayings  of  children. 

There  was  necessarily  a  gap  between  in- 
fancy and  school  life  in  which  the  child's  at- 
tention was  largely  devoted  to  the  out-door 
games  usual  to  this  period  of  life.  Indeed, 
games  aided  in  the  recreation  of  the  Athenian 
boy  at  all  ages.     Many  of  these  games  have 


STATE   EDUCATION   AT  ATHENS  45 

had  their  names  and  partial  descriptions 
preserved  to  us.  Among  them  were  the 
hobby  horse^,  and  hopping  on  one  foot^  on 
a  skin  bottle^  which  had  been  filled  with  a 
liquid  and  greased  on  the  outside.  Blind 
man's  buff  existed  in  a  game  termed  the 
"  brazen  fly ''.  *  In  the  game  called  ostra- 
hinda^ ,  an  oyster  shell  with  one  side  black 
or  moistened  was  tossed  in  the  air.  The 
black  side  was  called  night',  the  other  day"*. 
The  boys  were  divided  into  two  companies, 
and  when  the  shell  had  been  thrown  the 
party  whose  color  was  uppermost  pursued 
and  made  prisoners  of  their  opponents. 
Epistrahismus^  consisted  in  causing  an 
oyster  shell  to  skip  along  the  surface  of 
water  and  was  won  by  a  greater  number  of 
*'  skips  ".  Phryginda^  was  very  similar  to 
modern  marbles  except  that  dried  beans  were 
used  in  their  stead.  Spinning  coins  on  their 
edge^",  rolling  hoops^S  and  spinning  the 
various  kinds  of  tops^-,  were  favorite  games 


^  kccXa/xov  itapaftifvat.     •  ' a6kciD\icr^Etv . 
^^adkd?.     *  x<^^^V  uvla.  ^  ddrpdktvSa.  *  vv^- 
'  ifHEpa.     *  iTtidrpaktd/uoi.     *  (ppvyivda. 
' °  jfaA-ArKj/zoS.    ^^  rpoxoi.  ^'^  ftinfii^,  drpon^oi, 
and  6rpd^tXo<i. 


\ 


46        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

with  the  Athenian  boys.  A  common  game 
was  omillan^,  in  which  a  knuckle  bone  or 
round  stone  was  tossed  so  as  to  lie  in  a 
hole*  in  the  centre  of  a  fixed  circle,  the 
aim  being  to  displace  those  already  there. 
A  similar  game  is  common  among  the  Italian 
immigrants  employed  on  our  public  works. 
The  Italian  game  of  morra,  matching  thumbs 
and  fingers  as  to  number  and  position,  was 
also  played.  In  another  game  five  pebbles 
or  round  bones  (astragaloP)  were  tossed 
up*  so  as  to  be  received  on  the  back  of  the 
hand.  These  astragaloi  were  often  cut  square 
and  used  as  dice. 

The  ''beetle"  game  seems  to  have  fur- 
nished the  most  amusement.  A  long  thread 
was  attached  to  a  beetle®  and  he  was  guided 
in  his  flight  at  the  caprice  of  his  owner.  By 
way  of  improvement,  a  waxed  taper,  lighted, 
was  often  attached  to  his  tail.  This  sport 
is  even  yet  practised  in  Greece  and  has 
caused  several  serious  fires.  Ball  was  a 
favorite  game  and  was  played  even  in  Hom- 
eric times,  though  never  in  anything  like 


^  a>niX\av.         *  rpoTia.        '  ddrpdyaXoi. 
*  TtevTaXtBiZeiv.        '  hijXoXovBtj. 


STATE    EDUCATIOX    AT   ATHENS  47 

modern  complications  of  cricket,  tennis,  and 
base-ball.  The  game  is  supposed  to  have 
consisted  principally  in  throwing  and  catch- 
ing, the  players  keeping  time  in  some  sort 
of  rhythmic  motion.  Bpiskuros^  was  very 
nearly  modern  foot-ball.  Aporrix-  con- 
sisted in  making  the  ball  bound  from  the 
ground  or  from  a  wall  and  counting  the 
number  of  times  it  rebounded.  Other  games 
of  ball  were  CBWedi  phceninda^  and  urania*. 

While  many  of  these  games  were  too  com- 
plex to  have  belonged  to  this  time  of  the 
child^s  life,  it  has  been  impossible  to  sepa- 
rate them,  and  they  are  given  together  in 
this  place,  with  the  suggestion  that  most  of 
them  also  belonged  to  the  playtime  of  real 
school,  and  also  as  variants  with  the  regular 
gymnasium  exercises. 

The  scene  of  the  childhood  games  must 
have  been  largely  in  the  street.  Plutarch 
mentions  Alcibiade's  playing  there.  Though 
the  boy  was  under  constant  care  and  watch- 
fulness, from  Plato^s  observation  that  "  of 
all  animals,  the  boy  is  the  most  unmanage- 

^  intdkvpo?.        8  anoppi^.         '  (patvvSai. 
*  ovapvia. 


48        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

able,  he  is  the  most  insidious,  sharp-witted, 
and  insubordinate '%  we  would  infer  that 
twenty  centuries  have  not  essentially  changed 
his  characteristics  and  that  undoubtedly  his 
Attendant  found  his  office  no  sinecure. 


CHAPTER  V 


STATE   EDUCATION"  AT  ATHENS — AT    SCHOOL 

In  the  semi-kindergarten  period  just  dis- 
cussed, the  boys  and  girls  were  educated  to- 
gether, though  presumably  the  former  were 
granted  the  more  freedom.  At  the  age  of 
seven  the  boys  were  separated  from  the  girls 
and  commenced  school  life.  The  age,  how- 
ever, was  probably  varied  by  circumstances. 
The  girFs  education  continued  to  be  carried 
on  within  her  home.  At  no  time  in  the 
history  of  Grreece  was  the  intellectual  culture 
of  women  deemed  important ;  on  the  con- 
trary those  possessing  it  were  considered 
morally  low,  and  to  this  class  women  with 
accomplished  minds  were  usually  limited. 

Arrived  at  the  momentous  time,  "  begin- 
ning school ",  a  slave  was  chosen  the  con- 
stant companion  of  the  boy.  This  slave  or 
pedagogue  (conductor  of  children)  was  care- 
fully selected  with  reference  to  honesty  and 
intelligence.     Men  of  polished  manners  were 


50        ELEMENTARY   GBEEK    EDUCATION 

preferred.  The  pedagogue  had  general  over- 
sight of  his  protege,  accompanying  him  to 
the  school  and  gymnasium,  carrying  books, 
writing  implements,  and  other  school  uten- 
sils, and  guarding  him  from  danger  every- 
where. Whether  this  attendant  remained  to 
fetch  his  charge  is  uncertain.  If  he  remained 
it  must  have  been  outside  the  school,  as  the 
law  forbade  under  penalty  of  death  that  any 
person  other  than  relatives  of  the  master  be 
allowed  to  enter.  In  later  times  this  law 
was  not  strictly  enforced,  but  it  shows  the 
importance  which  was  attached  to  the  absence 
of  all  distracting  influences.  While  Plutar-ch 
censures  a  want  of  care  in  choosing  the  ped- 
agogue*, we  may  safely  presume  that  in  a 
country  where  such  attention  was  generally 
paid  to  right  surroundings,  carelessness  in 
this  particular  could  not  have  been  usual. 

The  boy  started  early  for  school  attended 
by  the  pedagogue  and  returned  for  a  late 
breakfast.     Arguing     from    analogy     with 

*The  reader  will  notice  that  here  and  elsewhere, 
this  word  is  not  used  in  its  English  sense,  but  rather 
referring  to  the  attendant  slave  who  accompanied 
the  boy  to  the  school,  where  he  was  placed  under 
tuition  of  the  teacher  (5z5a(jA;aAoS). 


STATE   EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  51 

Boman  schools,  it  has  been  surmised  that  the 
afternoons  were  given  up  to  h'ght  gymnastics 
and  other  occupations  of  a  recreative  nature. 
Schools  were  forbidden  by  law  to  open  before 
sunrise  or  to  continue  after  sunset.  The 
Interpretamenta  of  Dositheus  gives  the  fol- 
lowing in  parallel  Greek  and  Latin  as  de- 
scriptive of  the  morning  entrance  into  the 
school.  ''First,  I  salute  the  master,  who 
returns  my  salute  :  '  Good  morning,  master  ; 
good  morning,  school  fellows.  Give  me  my 
place,  my  seat,  my  stool.  Sit  closer.  Move 
up  that  way.  This  is  my  place ;  I  took  it 
first.'" 

There  were  three  different  buildings 
connected  with  the  education  of  the  Greek 
boy  :  the  school-room,  the  palsestra  and  the 
gymnasium.  (The  palaestra  and  gymnasium 
will  be  described  in  the  chapter  on  gymnas- 
tics.) The  term  schoU  (leisure),  often  ap- 
plied to  the  school,  was  of  later  application, 
and  properly  belonged  to  the  leisurely  dis- 
cussions of  the  philosophers.  To  distin- 
guish the  school-room  the  terms,  didaska- 
leion,  or  pedagogeion,  were  applied  instead 
of  scholeion.     These  school-houses,  though. 


52   ELEMENTARY  GEEEK  EDUCATION 

not  State  institutions,  were  provided  with 
such  furniture  and  equipments  as  the  iiys- 
tem  required.  The  teacher  occupied  a  large, 
high  chair  {thro?ios)  with  a  straight  back 
and  low  arms.  The  children  stood  or  sat 
about,  either  on  benches  {hathroi)  or  on  the 
ground.  Tables  or  desks  were  unknown 
furniture.  In  reading  or  writing,  it  was  the 
universal  custom,  as  yet  in  the  east,  to  hold 
the  book  or  roll "  upon  the  knees.  From 
pictures  which  have  been  preserved,  it  is 
judged  that  the  walls  were  hung  with  vari- 
ous articles  necessary  in  a  school-room. 
There  are  discerned  boxes  for  book-rolls, 
the  implements  used  in  teaching  writing  and 
reading,  reckoning  boards  (abaci),  writing- 
boards,  geometrical  models,  flute  cases,  lyres, 
etc.  Notice-boards  on  which  regulations 
were  posted,  are  referred  to.  These  were 
covered  with  chalk  and  called  **  white 
boards  "  ;  how  they  were  written  on  is  not 
told.  Previous  to  the  Peloponnesian  War 
(431-404  B.  C.)  books  were  not  common. 
Later,  they  were  rapidly  multiplied  by  slave- 
copyists,  and  a  special  part  of  the  market- 
place was  set  apart  for  their   sale.     Their 


STATE   BDUCATIOlf   AT   ATHENS  53 

use  in  schools  was  limited  at  all  times,  owing 
to  the  stress  placed  on  memory.  The  books 
existing  were  written  on  rolls  of  papyrus  or 
tablets  of  wax  fastened  together  at  the  side. 
From  recent  researches,  it  has  been  conjec- 
tured that  the  texts  of  many  authors  had 
illustrated  school  sheets  accompanying  them. 
Grasberger  (II.,  224)  says  that  Bottiger  and 
0.  Jahn  from  their  researches  have  conclud- 
ed that  the  fragments  of  the  tabula  Iliaca 
of  Theodoras,  now  preserved  in  the  Capitol- 
ine  Museum  at  Rome,  are  but  pieces  of  one 
of  the  many  tablets  illustrating  different 
scenes  of  the  Trojan  War  and  kindred  legends, 
which  once  adorned  the  walls  of  the  school- 
room and  helped  to  render  more  vivid  the 
marvellous  descriptions  of  the  poets.  These 
pictures  were  of  a  large  size  and  arranged  in 
a  series,  having  names  and  explanations 
attached.  Thus  the  scene  in  the  first  book 
of  the  Iliad,  in  which  Chryses  prays  x\ga- 
memnoa  to  free  his  daughter  and  receive  the 
ransom,  is  represented  with  Chryses  implor- 
ing Agamemnon,  and  close  at  hand,  a  wagon 
loaded  with  the  proffered  price,  while  under- 
neath are  the  words  Chryses,  Agamemnon, 


54        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    BDUCATIOlf 

Eansom.  Scenes  in  the  third  and  twenty- 
fourth  books  of  the  same  poem  and  others 
from  the  Odyssey  have  received  like  treat- 
ment. In  each  school-room  there  was  a 
shrine  of  the  Muses  or  of  Hermes.  Offer- 
ings were  made  before  it,  and  the  head  of 
the  school  was  regarded  as  its  priest.  About 
the  room  were  disposed  statutes  of  the 
tutelary  gods  and  busts  of  heroes  and  emi- 
nent men,  serving  both  as  ornaments  and  as 
incentives  to  the  boys.  A  scholium  of 
-^schines  says  that  a  supply  of  water  was 
always  at  hand  to  allay  thirst. 

All  schools  were  private  ventures.  The 
State  never  furnished  school-buildings  or 
exercised  much  surveillance  over  the  school. 
The  general  intelligence  of  the  citizens  main- 
tained the  system  exclusive  of  State  compul- 
sion. Plato  suggests  the  appointment  of 
teachers  to  be  paid  at  public  expense,  but 
the  plan  was  not  adopted  till  late. 

By  a  law  of  Solon,  certain  officers  were 
appointed  to  inspect  the  schools,  but  their 
duties  seem  to  have  been  coufined  to  admin- 
istering certain  laws  regarding  morality,  aijd 
to  have  had  little  reference  to   examining 


STATE   EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  55 

into  the  qualifications  of  the  teachers.  In 
fact  the  only  necessary  qualification  men- 
tioned was  that  they  should  be  forty  years  of 
age.  Teachers  practised  their  profession 
rather  for  want  of  other  employment  than 
from  any  special  fitness.  Yet,  since  the 
choice  lay  with  .the  parents,  we  should  hard- 
ly expect  want  of  care  in  the  selection ; 
while  the  facts  that  the  wages  must  have 
varied  with  the  fitness  of  the  teacher,  and 
that  they  depended  on  the  number  of  pupils, 
must  have  been  a  constant  incentive  to  bet- 
ter preparation. 

Teachers  were,  however,  never  greatly 
honored.  If  quite  learned,  they  were  ac- 
cused of  pedantry,  and  if  zealous  and  im- 
patient, of  bad  temper.  Dionysius,  the 
tyrant  of  Syracuse,  spent  his  old  age  teach- 
ing children  at  Corinth.  An  unknown  comic 
writer  said  of  someone  :  "The  man  is  either 
dead  or  teaching  the  alphabet."  Demos- 
thenes in  the  De  Corona  thus  seeks  to  belittle 
his  opponent :  *'  But  you,  worthy  man,  who 
despise  others  compared  with  yourself,  now 
compare  with  mine  your  lot,  which  con- 
signed you  to  grow  up  from  boyhood  in  the 


56   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

greatest  need,  when  you  helped  your  father 
to  attend  in  the  school,  preparing  the  ink, 
cleaning  the  benches,  sweeping  out  the 
school-room,  and  so  taking  the  rank  of  a 
slave  and  not  of  a  free  boy."  The  teacher^s 
pay  was  dependent  upon  attendance  and  was 
due  monthly.  Deductions  were  made  pro- 
portionate with  a  pupil's  absence  when  such 
occurred.  Extravagant  prices  were  charged 
by  the  Rhetoricians  and  Sophists,  but  the 
pay  of  the  ordinary  school  teacher  was  prob- 
ably reasonable.  The  attendance  in  a  school- 
room was  limited  by  law. 

While  the  absence  of  compulsion  made  the 
matter  of  education  mostly  dependent  upon 
the  father's  conscientiousness,  there  were  few 
cases  of  neglect.  The  extent  of  education 
depended  upon  the  circumstances  of  the 
family. 

The  sons  of  the  wealthy  of  course  attended 
longer  than  their  poorer  associates.  Some 
even  continued  at  school  until  their  admis- 
sion into  the  ranks  of  the  '' patrolling  police  " 
at  the  age  of  sixteen  or  eighteen.  The  dis- 
cipline was  largely  by  corporal  punishment, 
and   its    justice   is   maintained.     The  only 


STATE    EDUCATION    AT   ATHENS  57 

caution  is  against  using  a  servile  mode  of 
punishment  on  a  free  toy.  The  common 
representations  of  the  Greek  school-master  as 
a  cruel  flogging  machine,  as  he  is  represented 
in  pictures  exhumed  at  Pompei,  and  as  al- 
luded to  by  Lucian,  were  undoubtedly  satiri- 
cal exaggerations. 


CHAPTER  VI 


STATE  EDUCATION"  AT  ATHENS — GYMNASTICS 

The  essential  branches  of  education  were 
different  at  different  times.  In  the  time 
of  Pericles,  there  were  distinctly  but  two 
branches,  Gymnastics  and  Music,  the  latter 
including  Grammatics,  Music  in  its  limited 
sense.  Drawing,  and  Dancing.  Drawing  is 
not  mentioned  before  Aristotle,  but  must  have 
been  common  to  have  produced  such  painters, 
-architects,  and  sculptors  as  flourished  in 
this  period.  The  term  '*  music  "  was  with 
the  Greek,  synonymous  with  everything 
included  under  intellectual  culture,  and 
only  received  its  specialized  sense  with  the 
advent  of  the  philosophic  age. 

Gymnastics  was  the  principal  branch  of 
school  instruction,  and  was  the  only  one 
which  was  carried  on  at  State  expense  and 
practised  through  life.  Its  limits  are  not 
exactly  known,  though  it  is  certain  that  it 
occupied  one-half  the  time  and  attention  of 


STATE   EDUCATION"   AT  ATHENS  59 

the  pupil  until  his  sixteenth  year  and  for  the 
succeeding  two  years  was  his  entire  training. 

Plato  and  Aristotle  recommended  keeping 
the  boys  under  the  instruction  of  the  gym- 
nasium until  ten  years  old,  and  supplement- 
ing this  by  three  years  at  the  school  of  the 
grammarian.  From  similarities  to  the  Roman 
system  in  some  other  respects,  and  from 
reference  in  Plautus,  it  has  been  thought 
that  the  day  was  divided  between  the  differ- 
ent studies.  This  supposition  seems  the 
more  rational  because  harmonic  develop- 
ment was  their  constant  aim,  and  the  re- 
forming tendencies  of  Plato  and  Aristotle 
would  hardly  lead  us  to  expect  them  to  record 
here  simply  common  usage. 

G-ymnastic  exercises  were  carried  on  in 
two  different  buildings,  or  possibly  two  divis- 
ions of  the  same  building,  the  gymnasium 
and  the  palaestra.  The  exact  functions  of 
each  remains  a  matter  of  dispute.  Some 
consider  the  gymnasium  a  building  erected 
at  State  expense  and  open  for  general  public 
use,  while  the  palaestra  was  a  smaller  estab- 
lishment, a  private  venture  of  the  gymnasium 
instructor,  and  devoted  entirely  to  the  use 


60        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

of  boys.  Becker  in  his  '*  Charicles  "  proves 
the  presence  of  boys  in  the  gymnasium  as 
well  as  the  palaestra,  which  would  favor  the 
view  that  the  latter  was  one  of  the  subdivis- 
ions of  the  gymnasium.  Accepting  this 
view,  we  find  the  gymnasium  consisting  of 
a  large  building  with  these  parts, — (1)  stooe 
or  porticoes  divided  into  apartments,  or  ex- 
hedrce  furnished  with  seats  and  fitted  for  the 
study  and  discourse  of  the  wise  ;  (2)  play- 
grounds where  the  epheM  or  youth  exercised  ; 
(3)  dressing  rooms  ;  (4)  palaestra  or  wrest- 
ling place,  the  floor  of  which  was  covered 
with  dust  or  gravel  to  prevent  slipping  ;  (5 ) 
hot  and  cold  baths ;  and  (6)  the  stadia,  a 
sort  of  semi-circular  race  course,  in  which 
most  of  the  exercises  took  place. 

There  were  three  state  gymnasiums  at 
Athens,  the  Lyceum,  the  Academia,  and 
Cynosarges,  and  later  several  smaller  ones 
were  added.  To  none  but  the  Cynosarges 
were  other  than  those  of  pure  Athenian 
blood  admitted.  This  gymnasium  was  un- 
der the  guardianship  of  Heracles  and  admit- 
ted those  of  mixed  parentage. 

The  aim   of  gymnastics  was  not  only  to 


STATE   EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  61 

make  the  body  strong  and  active,  but  more 
especially  to  give  a  carriage  dignified  and 
graceful.  All  wished  to  fashion  the  body 
into  a  living  likeness  of  a  god  and  to 
be  crowned  victor  at  the  public  games.  All 
gymnasiums  were  under  the  care  of  ten  gym- 
nasiarchs,  who  had  general  supervision  of 
the  building  and  removed  at  pleasure  those 
teachers  and  philosophers  of  whom  they  dis- 
approved. Subordinate  to  these  were  cer- 
tain inferior  officers  called  hypohasmetm  and 
a  stafE  of  instructors  ;  pedoiribce  and  gym- 
nastcB.  The  pedotriim  taught  gymnastics 
as  a  part  of  education,  and  the  gymnastm 
trained  those  intending  to  become  profes- 
sional athletes.  The  usual  training  of  the 
former  consisted  of  the  five  exercises  of  the 
public  games  known  as  pentathlon.  These 
exercises  were, — the  lialma  or  leaping,  dis- 
cus or  quoits,  dromus  or  running,  pale  or 
wrestling,  and  pugme  or  boxing.  The  pan- 
oratum  though  not  forbidden  as  at  Sparta, 
was  in  disfavor  through  the  liability  to  disfig- 
urement, and  was  not  commonly  practised. 
The  exercises  were  taken  naked  {gymnos) 
both  in  the  gymnasium  and  in  the  games. 


62        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

In  preparation  for  the  lighter  exercises  the 
body  was  carefully  rubbed  with  olive-oil  and 
the  flesh  scraped  with  a  flesh-comb.  Here 
as  elsewhere,  the  youth  was  accompanied  by 
the  pedagogue,  who  kept  him  out  of  mischief 
and  looked  out  for  the  class  of  his  associates. 
Loungers  were  seldom  allowed,  and  in  Sparta 
the  rule  ** strip  or  go"  was  rigidly  enforced. 
The  race  course  was  laid  on  sandy  ground. 
A  requisite  for  competing  in  the  Olympian 
games  was  that  the  candidates  should  take 
oath  to  having  spent  one  month  in  training 
at  Elis.  The  gymnastic  training  was  espec- 
ially valued  for  its  influence  on  health,  all 
gymnasia  being  dedicated  to  Apollo  as  the 
god  of  healing.  The  importance  of  gymnas- 
tics in  Greek  training  was  incalculable.  The 
perfection  of  art,  the  architecture  which- 
derived  its  proportions  from  it,  the  sculp-' 
tures  which  are  its  memorials,  could  never 
have  existed  but  for  the  ideals  of  beauty  pro- 
duced and  exhibited  in  the  gymnasia,  and 
public  games. 


CHAPTER   VII 


STATE    EDUCATION  AT  ATHENS — MUSICA 

To  the  Greek,  with  his  world  one  of  beauty 
of  creation  and  imagination,  the  term  musica 
meant  a  wealth  of  influences  beyond  the  mod- 
ern comprehension  of  the  name.  Music  com- 
prised all  that  could  please  the  ear,  as  gyrti- 
naatics  founded  all  that  pleased  the  eye.  All 
intellectual  pleasure  which  the  ear  conveyed 
was  classed  as  Musica.  Poetry  was  music ; 
the  poet  aoidos,  "a  singer",  and  not  yet  the 
"vcidkQr",  poetes,  of  Aristotle.  Words  were 
not  poetry,  unless  '^ sweetened"  by  music, 
and  he  who  composed,  recited  or  read  them 
must  as  much  give  the  musical  as  the  verbal 
expression.  Who  had  not  been  taught  to 
sing  was  uneducated,  and  Themistocles  bore 
the  opprobium  of  such  a  neglect  through 
life.  Neither  civic  duty  nor  religious  wor- 
ship was  complete  without  music ;  the  laws 
were  sung  and  the  gods  were  worshipped  in 
services  of  singing  and  dancing. 


•64        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

Since  writing  recorded,  reading  inter- 
preted, and  anotation  very  like  the  numerical 
rendered  agreeable  the  thoughts  of  the  poet, 
nothing  is  less  difficult  to  conceive  than  the 
inclusion  of  "  the  three  K's"  under  Musica. 
A  little  later  these  branches  received  the  sepa- 
rate term  Grammatics  and  the  special  teach- 
er was  a  grammatist,  but  at  the  time  of 
Pericles  the  same  teacher  taught  all  branches 
of  musica  and  from  the  principal  instrument 
of  "music"  was  the  citharist  specialized 
from  the  general  didashalos. 

Reading. — From  the  popularity  of  the 
epic  poets,  it  is  probable  that  a  considerable 
knowledge  of  their  compositions  were  derived 
from  the  nursery  tales  of  the  child^s  earliest 
years.  "While  the  nurse  was  not  usually 
competent  to  teach  reading  or  probably  the 
alphabet  even,  she  must  have  done  much  to 
fill  the  minds  of  her  children  with  the  sub- 
ject-matter forming  the  basis  of  their  later 
reading.  The  synthetical  method  was  used  in 
teaching  the  pupil  to  read.  The  powers  of 
each  letter  were  first  taught,  then  the  sim- 
plest combinations  into  syllables,  and  finally 
these  into  words.    SyllaMcising  was  the  most 


STATE  EDUCATION  AT  ATHENS     65 

difficult  part  of  the  process  and  required 
most  drill  ;  both  it  and  reading  were  ren- 
dered difficult  by  the  manner  of  writing  with 
no  breaks  between  the  words  and  entirely 
without  written  accent.  After  mastering  the 
word,  the  sentence  was  taken  up  and  reading 
begun.  Ehythmical  arrangements  of  the  al- 
phabet were  used,  and  about  400  B.C.  Callias 
attempted  to  make  the  alphabet  an  agreeable 
study  by  a  so-called  "  grammatical  tragedy  ", 
which  was  based  upon  the  then  recent  intro- 
duction of  the  Ionic  alphabet  of  twenty-four 
letters. 

The  teacher  of  reading  employed  as  text- 
books principally  Homer  and  Hesiod,  with 
selected  passages  from  the  lyric  poets.  The 
Iliad  and  Odyssey  were  read  by  the  boys,  and 
passages  recited  and  precepts  committed  as 
the  Bible  or  catechism  would  be  in  a  modern 
church  school.  These  poems  were  looked 
upon  as  moral  guides;  and  Homer  was  revered 
as  one  who  had  written  with  a  moral  intent 
in  every  line,  and  who  moreover  had  been 
aided  and  inspired  by  a  certain  divine  aestrus 
which  had  not  been  granted  any  other  writ- 
er.    Even  the  arts  and  sciences  were  by  in- 


66   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

terpretation  drawn  from  his  pages.  Many 
grown  men  were  said  to  be  able  to  recite  the 
whole  of  either  poem.  The  selected  read- 
ings, chrestomathiae,  made  from  several  writ- 
ers are  supposed  to  be  all  that  remains  of 
their  compositions^.  From  the  prominent 
place  of  the  poets  in  the  schoolroom,  they 
were  often  called  "  school  masters  ".  In 
reading  great  care  was  exercised  in  giving 
the  proper  intonation  and  preserving  a  rhyth- 
mical balance  of  clauses.  Books  were  scarce 
and  libraries  exceptional.  What  the  boy  had 
read  must  be  remembered  if  he  would  use  or 
enjoy  it  again.  A  large  part  of  the  general 
instruction  was  by  dictation  or  conversation. 
While  the  pupil  was  probably  less  learned,  he 
was  more  ready  and  intelligent.  In  later  times 
by  the  use  of  parchment  books  became  more 
common,  and  complaints  were  made  in  regard 
to  the  increase  of  books  and  the  lust  after 
much  and  varied  reading. 

All  reading  was  strictly  from  the  Greek. 
While  the  different  dialects  did  not  hinder 
a  common  pride  and  ownership  in  the  pro- 

^  As  the  poems  of  Theognis,  the  Golden  Verses 
of  Pythagoras,  and  many  collections  of  maxims  or 
proverbs  (vTtoOfjkai), 


STATE   EDUCATION  AT   ATHENS  67 

ductions  of  genius  from  any  part  of  Hellas, 
there  was  an  utter  disregard  of  foreign 
tongues.  All  foreigners  were  barbarians  and 
must,  if  they  wished  to  communicate  with  a 
Greek,  either  learn  his  language  or  procure 
an  interpreter.  Aristotle  said  a  foreigner 
speaking  Greek  could  be  told  simply  by  his 
use  of  the  particles,  an  observation  which. 
Kenan  finds  equally  true  with  French.  Plu- 
tarch lamented  his  inability  to  learn  Latin,, 
thinking  that  had  he  been  taught  earlier,  it 
would  have  been  easier  ;  and  Strabo  mentions 
the  fact  that  historical  treatises  written  in 
foreign  tongues  were  inaccessiable  to  the 
Greeks. 

Writing. — Writing  was  learned  simultane- 
ously with  reading  :  indeed  the  writing  lesson 
of  one  day  became  the  reading  lesson  of  the 
next.  It  was  never  brought  to  any  great  de- 
gree of  perfection  in  form  or  rapidity,  as  this 
was  only  of  use  to  a  slave,  but  it  was  neverthe- 
less required.  The  material  commonly  used  in 
the  beginning  was  a  sheet  of  papyrus  which 
had  been  written  upon  and  thus  afforded  an 
already  prepared  copy  for  tracing.  Upon 
this  the  pupil  traced  carefully  the  letters 


C8        ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION' 

already  formed,  using  a  reed  (calamus) 
pointed  and  dipped  in  ink.  The  material 
generally  used  in  writing,  however,  was  a 
tablet  of  wax  upon  which  the  writing  was 
done  with  a  sharp-pointed  stylus,  one  end 
of  which  was  flattened  for  erasures.  In 
teaching  writing  in  wax,  a  copy  was  set  as 
in  a  modern  copy  book,  and,  in  the  earlier 
stages  the  hand  of  the  jiupil  was  guided  by 
that  of  the  master.  Double  lines  \^ere 
drawn  for  indicating  the  spacing,  coin- 
shaped  pieces  of  lead  being  used  for  the 
purpose.  This  act  of  marking  was  called 
2)aragrap1iien.  There  were  three  styles  of 
writing :  (1)  formal  hand,  consisting  of 
separate  capital  letters  and  appearing  in  in- 
scriptions and  probably  taught  to  children  ; 
(2)  cursive  hand  as  seen  in  the  Greek  papyri 
of  the  second  century  B.  C.  ;  and  (3)  the 
short  hand  of  later  manuscripts.  In  writ- 
ing intended  for  preservation  either  papyrus 
or  parchment  was  used  ;  the  former  was 
written  on  but  one  side,  the  latter  on  both. 
Daring  scarcity  of  material  papyri  of  little 
moment  were  erased  and  rewritten  ;  such 
were  jya^iwtj^ses/s.      Wax    tablets    fastened 


STATE    EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  G^ 

together  at  the  sides  were  in  use  for  tempo- 
rary preservation.  At  Athens,  a  special 
officer  {grammateus)  had  charge  of  writing 
all  public  documents  and  a  secretary  {liypo- 
grajjlieus)  "took  minutes"  at  all  public 
meetings. 

Number. — Number  was  treated  under  two 
heads,  the  practical  computations  of  every 
day  life,  called  logistic,  and  the  investiga- 
tion of  the  properties  of  numbers  and  dis- 
covery of  the  principles  applied  in  logistic, 
called  arithmetic.  The  latter  was  little 
known,  being  reserved  for  the  more  capable 
grasp  of  the  sophist  and  philosopher.  The 
former  was  the  common-school  arithmetic. 
Plato  advises  its  acquisition  as  an  amuse- 
ment, and  suggests  that  the  abstract  ideas 
of  thought  be  presented  in  as  concrete  a 
form  as  possible  by  the  use  of  apples  and 
other  available  objects.  In  representing 
numbers  five  different  methods  prevailed,  at 
different  times.  At  first,  starting  from  the 
original  suggestion  of  fingers,  numbers  were 
represented  by  straight  strokes  ;  but  soon 
the  five  vertical  lines  representing /re  were 
replaced  by  the  rude  picture  of  a  hand,  V 


70        ELEMENTARY   GREEK   EDUCATION 

(as  later  by  the  Romans),  and  in  represent- 
ing ten,  two  such  symbols,  X,  were  united. 
Larger  numbers  were  represented  by  the 
initial  letter  of  their  name, — X  W^^ot)  was 
1,000,  M  i^vpioi)  10,000,  etc.  Numbers  inter- 
mediate between  ten  and  one-hundrad  were 
indicated  by  a  combination  of  initials  as  n 
standing  tor  five  (nevre)  and  ^  for  ten  (^f'/fca), 
^fiy,  five  times  ten,  was  written  |  a|. 

In  the  ordinary  counting  and  in  the  com- 
putations of  the  market-place,  the  fingers 
were  used,  not  placed  as  digits,  but  bent  at 
different  angles  and  in  varied  relations  to 
each  other.  The  operator  held  his  hand 
with  fingers  erect  and  palms  facing  outward. 
The  second,  third  and  fourth  fingers  might 
be  straight,  half-closed  or  closed. 

The  following  was  the  method  : — 

(a)  On  the  left  hand 

for  1,  half -close  the  4th  finger  only. 
"  2,     "      "       "    3d  and  4th  fingers  only. 


3,     "      " 

"    2d,  3d  and  4th"       " 

4,     "      " 

"    2d  and  3d 

5,  "  '    " 

6,  "      " 

"    2d               finger     " 
"    3d 

7,  close 

"    4th 

8,  " 

9,  " 

' '    3d  and  4th  fingers  only 
"    2d,  3d  and  4th  "       " 

STATE    EDUCATION"   AT   ATHENS  71 

(5)  Tlie  same  operations  on  the  right  hand  give 
the  Viousanda,  from  one  thousand  to  nine 
thousand. 

(c)  On  the  left  hand 

for  10,  place  the  tip  of  the  forefinger  at  the 
base  of  the  thumb,  thus  forming  d. 

"  20,  forefinger  straight,  separated  from 
thumb  by  fingers  slightly  bent. 

'*  30,  join  tips  of  forefinger  and  thumb. 

"  40,  thumb  behind,  on  knuckle  of  fore- 
finger. 

"  50,  thumb  in  front,  on  base  of  fore- 
finger. 

"  60,  thumb  as  50,  bending  forefinger  to 
touch  ball  of  thumb. 

"  70,  rest  forefinger  on  top  of  thumb. 

"  80,  thumb  on  palm,  forefinger  bent  over 
first  joint  of  thumb  and  other  fingers 
slightly  bent. 

"  90,  close  forefinger  only,  completely  as 
possible. 

(d)  The  same  on  the  right  hand  gives  hundreds 

from  one  hundred  to  nine  hundred. 
When  accuracy  was  desired  and  the  com- 
putations became  involved,  a  counting- board 
or  abacus  was  employed.  This  consisted  of 
a  stone  or  board  having  several  straight  fur- 
rows in  which  pebbles  or  plugs  were  set.  At 
the  left  side  was  a  special  vertical  division 
where  each  unit  was  equal  to  five.     The  hor- 


73        ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 


izontal  divisions  had  value  according  to  th(& 
decimal  scale.  The  number  six  hundred 
forty-eight  would  be  represented  thus  on 
the  abacus. 


X.  (thousands). 


(Fives.) 

(Units.) 

■ 

■ 

■  ■■■ 

■ 

■  ■■ 

E.  (hundred8).500-|-100=600 


A  (tens)... 


(units. 


...4X10=40 


.5+3=8 


648 

The  books  of  the  Iliad  and  Odyssey  were 
numbered  with  the  letters  of  the  alphabet  in 
order,  from  one  to  twenty-four.  This  mode 
of  enumeration  was  borrowed  from  Phoen- 
icia.    Its  use  was  never  extended. 

The  last  system  in  use  among  the  Greeks 
and  the  most  useful,  was  that  of  employing 
the  letters  of  the  alphabet  with  a  fixed  value 
for  each  letter  and  an  arrangement  quite 
like  the  Arabic.  The  letters  from  aljjha  (a) 
to  iota  {{)  represented  successively  the  num- 


STATE    EDUCATION"    AT   ATHENS  73 

bers  from  one  to  ten  inclusive,  introducing 
the  digamma  for  six.  Each  ten  above  the 
first  was  represented  by  the  letters  following 
iota,  in  succession  as  far  as  ro  for  one  hun- 
dred, introducing  Tcopjpa  for  ninety.  Each 
hundred  was  expressed  by  the  succeeding 
letters,  with  san  for  nine  hundred.  All 
numbers  intermediate  between  the  decimals 
were  expressed  by  a  combination  of  letters 
just  as  by  figures  in  our  own  system.  The 
acute  accent  was  used  on  the  right  hand 
letter  of  each  number  below  one  thousand. 
For  one  thousand,  alpha,  with  a  subscribed 
accent  was  used,  with  the  succeeding  letters ' 
with  like  accent  for  each  subsequent  thous- 
and to  ten  thousand.  Above  ten  thousand 
the  numbers  were  written. 

During  the  time  treated  in  this  article, 
the  finger  notation  was  common  in  trading 
problems,  the  abacus  in  reckoning  those 
more  deeply  involved,  and  the  method  last 
mentioned  was  that  used  in  all  accounts  and 
records.  The  ordinary  school  boy  was  taught 
to  add,  to  subtract,  to  multiply,  and  to 
divide. 

Geometry  though  not  yet  extended  by  the 


74   ELEMENTARY  GREEK  EDUCATION 

genius  of  Euclid  was  yet  considerably  ad- 
vanced. "While  it  was  not  taught  in  schools, 
it  was  held  in  high  esteem  as  an  elegant  and 
perfect  science.  Both  Plato  and  Aristotle 
agree  as  to  its  extraordinary  value  as  a  means 
of  mental  training,  and  in  the  fact  that  it 
can  be  taught  to  young  boys  yet  unfit  for 
political  or  metaphysical  studies.  The  Par- 
thenon, by  Ictinus,  was  accurately  geometri- 
cal, and  the  temple  of  Zeus  at  Olympia,  by 
Libon,  was  built  in  multiples  of  five  and 
seven,  showing  conclusively  that  mathemat- 
ical studies  were  pursued  to  a  considerable 
extent. 

Music  proper. — Music,  in  the  modern 
sense,  was  much  cultivated,  and  its  influence 
has  probably  never  been  better  understood 
nor  its  study  and  j)ractice  so  general.  Its 
educative  importance  has  been  mentioned. 
It  was  believed  to  affect  the  passions  as 
training  in  the  gymnasium  did  the  physique. 
As  the  character  of  the  music  so  that  of  the 
nation.  Martial  music  produced  a  race  of 
warriors ;  sentimental,  effeminate  and  vol- 
uptuous music  would  develop  traits  sympa- 
thetic  in   its    hearers.     It   lightened   care. 


STATE   EDUCATION    AT   ATHENS  75 

purified  the  thoughts,  and  harmonized  the 
soul.  It  was  the  accomplishment  of  the 
gentleman  and  the  expression  of  worship  to 
his  gods. 

Greek  music  had  none  of  the  modern 
technicality  of  composition  or  execution. 
There  is  no  evidence  that  there  was  anything 
of  harmony  other  than  of  the  octave,  and 
that  only  in  mixed  choruses. 

In  accord  with  the  belief,  different  nations 
had  music  of  different  character.  Of  these 
Plato  mentions  six — the  Lydian  proper,  two 
modifications,  the  half  Lydian,  and  accented 
Lydian,  the  Ionian,  the  Dorian,  and  the 
Phaygriau.  He  condemned  the  Lydian 
proper,  and  the  Ionian  as  soft,  and  the  other 
forms  of  Lydian  as  mournful.  To  him  the 
Dorian  and  Phrygian  are  the  height  of  man- 
liness and  morality.  At  Athens  the  Doric 
scale,  nearly  corresponding  to  our  minor, 
seems  to  have  been  the  favorite,  and  the 
Lydian  measures,  most  like  the  modern 
major,  were  generally  regarded  immoral. 
So  great  was  held  to  be  the  importance  of  a 
proper  selection  of  airs  that  a  state  composer 
was  appointed  whose  duty  it  was  to  examine 


76        ELEMENTARY   GREEK    EDUCATION 

all  new  compositions  and  to  euperintend 
their  circulation. 

The  study  of  music  did  not  begin  till 
about  the  thirteenth  year,  although  from  its 
prevalence  the  boy  could  not  have  remained 
in  ignorance  of  it  more  than  at  present.  As 
now,  it  was  divided  into  vocal  and  instru- 
mental ;  naturally  the  former  was  first  culti- 
vated. When  the  instruction  was  given  in 
charge  of  separate  teachers,  the  one  teaching 
vocal  music  was  called  p1i07iaskas.  Under 
him  the  elements  of ,  music  reading  and 
vocal  rendering  were  acquired.  Fol- 
lowing the  phonaskas  the  instrumental 
teacher,  citharist,  took  up  the  instruction. 
It  was  necessary  that  the  instrumental 
teacher  be  also  a  vocalist,  and  indeed  he 
generally  taught  both  branches.  Instru- 
mental music  in  general  found  its  only  popu- 
larity in  accompanying  the  voice.  Even  the 
flute  was  used  principally  to  accompany 
another's  singing. 

The  favorite  instruments  were  the  ciVAara, 
an  instrument  remotely  resembling  the 
guitar,  and  the  lyre,  which  was  made  origi- 
nally with  four  strings  stretched  across  a 


STATE    EDUCATION    AT   ATHENS  77 

tortoise  shell.  It  was  increased  to  seven  by 
Terpander,  660  B.  C,  and  Pythagoras  com- 
pleted the  octave  by  adding  an  eighth. 

Anacreon  was  said  to  have  used  a  magacUs 
with  twenty  strings.  The  cithera  was  the 
most  popular,  and  the  teacher  of  instru- 
mental music  was  named  for  it.  The  flute 
was  popular  at  Thebes,  and  at  one  time  even 
in  Athens.  Alcibiades  brought  it  into  dis- 
favor there  because  it  disfigured  his  hand- 
some face.  Its  lack  in  not  permitting  the 
performer  to  use  his  own  voice  furthered  its 
unpopularity.  It  was  thought  unworthy  a 
brave  man.  Aristotle  says  :  "  The  flute  is 
not  a  moral  instrument,  but  rather  one  to 
influence  the  passions."  The  ilute  mentioned 
was  more  nearly  the  modern  clarionet.  The 
modern  flute,  cross-played  flute,  was  less 
common.  Double  flutes,  played  by  means 
of  leather-mouth-pieces,  were  used  by  the 
female  flute  players,  who  enlivened  the  sym- 
posium. The  myth  of  Marysas  evidently 
alludes  to  the  victory  of  the  lyre  over  the 
flute. 

Drawing. — Drawing  was  a  late  addition 
io  the  curriculum  of  the  Greek  school,  and. 


78        ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 

as  it  was  first  mentioned  by  Aristotle,  was 
probably  not  common  much  before  the  time 
of  Alexander.  By  theorists  its  use  was  early 
recognized, — for  practical  purposes,  to  bet- 
ter judge  and  appreciate  works  of  art, — for 
aesthetical  purposes,  unconsciously  moulding 
the  mind  to  beauty  by  a  close  and  accurate 
study  of  beautiful  forms.  From  the  appli- 
cation of  the  word  zographia  (life-drawing) 
to  painting  in  general,  it  has  been  inferred 
that  figure  painting  was  the  earliest  and 
principal  branch  of  the  art.  Vase  painting 
is  always  of  this  character.  Owing  to  the 
Greek  habit  of  personification,  true  land- 
scapes were  not  early  essayed.  The  custom 
of  representing  mountains  and  rivers  by 
their  tutelary  gods  was  common.  In  the 
pediment  sculptures  of  the  best  epoch,  these 
appear  as  emblematic  of  their  appropriate 
landscape.  Even  when  true  landscapes  were 
attempted,  the  subjects  were  not  rocks  and 
trees  or  wild  country,  but  buildings  and  ar- 
tificial grounds.  Perspective  was  first  intro- 
duced in  scene-painting.  Maps  of  the 
"world",  in  the  Greek  sense  of  the  word, 
were  said  to  exist  at  Athens. 


STATE    EDUCATION   AT   ATHENS  79 

The  culmination  of  all  education  seems  to 
have  been  dancing,  the  orchesis  or  chorus,  a 
thing  a  little  surprising  to  us.  As  music 
and  letters  prepared  for  civil  life,  and  gym- 
nastic! for  military,  so  the  combination  of 
these  prepared  for  the  highest  duty,  worship 
of  the  gods.  Though  dancing  was  a  com- 
mon entertainment  of  the  symposium  it  was 
that  of  slaves,  and  there  is  no  evidence  that 
the  free-born  Athenian  ever  danced  except 
in  the  tragic  or  comic  choruses  or  "before 
his  gods." 

Where  or  when  dancing  was  taught  as  re- 
gards school  work,  it  is  not  definitely  known, 
but  the  readiness  with  which  large  choruses 
were  formed  on  short  notice  is  ample  evi- 
dence that  it  was  taught  well.  In  the  prepara- 
tion for  a  play  the  forming  and  training  of 
the  chorus  is  clearly  settled.  The  choregus 
chosen  by  the  archon  undertook  the  sole  care 
and  expense  of  providing  a  suitable  chorus, 
usually  boys.  These  choreutae  were  selected, 
a  trainer  chosen,  and  a  suitable  place  for 
training  provided,  either  by  building  or  in 
the  choregus's  own  house.  Care  was  taken 
that  the  food  should  strengthen  the  voice. 


80        ELEMENTARY    GREEK   EDUCATION 

which  shows  the  dual  character  of  the 
chorus — dancing  and  singing.  The  music 
for  dancing  was  provided  by  the  singing  of 
the  clioreutae,  later  by  the  cithara,  and  in 
connection  with  the  plays  by  the  flute. 

The  harmony  of  soul  and  physique  which 
dancing  produced  is  ample  reason  for  plac- 
ing it  at  the  head  of  the  system.  As  a  sup- 
plement to  gymnastic  culture,  it  toned  down 
the  too  ardent  exercise  of  the  gymnasium, 
the  over-energy  of  muscular  development^  to 
the  ease  and  gracfe  which  was  the  Ionic 
ideal. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


STATE  EDUCATION"  AT  ATHENS.— EPHEBIC 
TRAINING. 

From  the  small  size  and  limited  popula- 
tion of  the  Greek  States,  a  professional  army 
was  seldom  possible.  At  Sparta  each  person 
became  a  citizen  only  to  merge  this  identity 
into  that  of  a  soldier.  While  no  standing 
army,  paid  from  government  funds,  was 
maintained,  each  had  an  assigned  place  in 
the  ranks,  and  was  in  constant  readiness  to 
fill  it.  In  other  States  the  military  prepon- 
derance was  much  lessened,  but  no  where 
were  the  citizens  allowed  to  grow  up  without 
special  training  in  military  discipline  and 
the  use  of  arms. 

At  the  age  of  sixteen  or  eighteen  (vari- 
ously stated)  the  Athenian  boy  usually  ceased 
his  exercises  in  school,  excepting  gymnas- 
tics, and  was  admitted  to  the  rank  of  ephe- 
hus.  On  this  occasion,  with  solemn  service 
and  sacrifice,  he  took  oaths  of  fidelity  and 


82        ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION 

patriotism,  and  undertook  military  duties 
preparatory  to  assuming  the  full  responsi- 
bilities of  life  as  a  political  burgess  at 
twenty.  The  ephebi  were  clothed  in  a  dis- 
tinctive dress  consisting  of  a  short  gray  cloak 
or  chlamys  and  broad-brimmed  soft  hat, 
petasus,  in  addition  to  their  regular  attire, 
and  called  peripoloi  (patrolling  police). 
They  looked  after  the  internal  order  of  At- 
tica, the  condition  of  the  roads,  and  occu- 
pied the  frontier  forts.  They  were  not  ex- 
pected to  stand  under  battle  until  their  two 
year's  probation  was  passed  and  citizenship 
conferred.  Yet  at  a"  time  when  the  Athe- 
nians were  waging  war  away  from  home, 
leaving  the  city  without  aimed  defence,  an 
attack  made  by  the  Corinthians  was  speedily 
repelled  by  the  "boys  and  old  men  of 
Athens".  Though  this  class  has  been  re- 
ferred to  as  universal,  it  was  more  probably 
limited  to  the  wealthy.  In  later  times,  Ro- 
man citizens  often  sent  their  sons  to  be  en- 
rolled as  ephebi  a.nd  to  undergo  its  discipline. 
Clubs  were  formed  among  them :  solemn 
meetings  were  held ;  and  public  life  imi- 
tated. 


STATE   EDUCATION^^AT  ATHENS  83 

After  admission  to  citizenship,  the  choice 
of  life's  vocation  was  entirely  under  the  con- 
trol of  the  individual.  He  must  avoid  busi- 
ness, though,  if  he  would  exercise  his  whole 
freeman^s  rights.  None  who  had  sold  in  the 
market  place  within  ten  years  could  take 
part  in  public  affairs.  Should  the  young 
man  wish  higher  educational  advantages 
and  be  possessed  of  sufficient  means,  he 
could  attend  the  lectures  of  the  Sophists  and 
Rhetoricians.  The  instruction  given  by  them 
stood  in  much  the  same  relation  to  the  edu- 
cational system  of  that  time  as  the  modern 
college  to  ours.  Beyond  this  was  the  in- 
struction of  the  philosophers,  which  bore 
some  relation  to  the  university  of  to-day. 
The  critical  taunts  which  were  ever  passing 
between  them  in  no  small  degree  completes 
the  comparison. 

In  addition  to  the  detailed  instruction  of 
the  school,  there  was  the  constant  influence 
of  surroundings  favorable  to  the  highest 
aims.  A  climate  free  from  excessive  heat 
or  cold  gave  exemption  from  the  necessities 
of  more  vigorous  climates  and  furnished 
leisure  for  the  attainment  of  an  ideal.     Ar- 


84        ELEMENTARY    GREEK    EDUCATION" 

chitecture  unequalled  and  statuary  which 
yet  challenges  approach,  adorned  the  streets 
of  the  city.  The  free  discussions  of  true 
democracy  kept  every  man  alive  to  the  vital 
issues  of  the  day.  Orations  peerless  in  all 
time,  tragic  and  comic  plays  which  have  yet 
our  admiration,  were  to  be  heard  by  all  de- 
siring ;  and  the  memories  of  men  victorious 
in  war,  eminent  in  verse,  and  renowned  in 
oratory,  were  perpetuated  in  monument  and 
song.  Such  a  combination  of  influences, 
aesthetic,  patriotic,  and  noble,  has  never 
supplemented  any  school  system  before  or 
since.  Under^such  influences  the  Greek  boy 
grew  to  manhood  ;  and  by  this  means  Greece 
attained  her  peerless  eminence. 

The  attempt  has  been  made  to  present  as 
accurately  as  possible  the  educational  prac- 
tices of  Greece  at  the  time  in  which  her 
greatest  glory  was  achieved,  purposely  limit- 
ing the  discussion  to  that  part  of  the  system 
which  is  immediately  connected  with  the 
growing  mind.  In  the  succeeding  centuries 
various  differentiations  arose  from  the  sys- 
tem here  presented.  Minds  with  a  vision 
extending  far  down  the  ages,  formulated 


STATE  EDUCATION  AT  ATHENS     85 

theories  which  are  prized  among  the  educa- 
tional maxims  of  to-day  and  which  were  the 
basis  of  education  for  centuries  in  all  civil- 
ized countries,  but  these  rather  disrupted 
than  unified  elementary  education,  and  were 
never  largely  incorporated  in  Greek  life. 
The  education  obtained  in  the  plastic  years 
was  pivotal  and  at  the  time  of  greatest  na- 
tional prosperity  must  have  been  best.  Of 
this  the  discussion  has  been. 

In  looking  over  this  system,  the  prevalence 
of  so-called  modern  methods  and  devices, 
the  parallels  of  recent  movements  in  educa- 
tion, make  it  clearer  that  what  we  know  of 
method  is  the  resultant  of  centuries  of  cum- 
ulative experiment.  Since  music,  dancing, 
drawing,  and  physical  culture  were  deemed 
essential,  and  tracing  in  early  penmanship 
and  reading  and  composition  from  the 
classics  of  the  language  were  usual,  little 
other  emphasis  is  needed  to  impress  how 
fraught  with  suggestion  is  the  history  of 
past  systems  or  how  advantageous  to  educa- 
tion the  intelligent  appropriation  of  educa- 
tional experience. 


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